Charging a Phone With Candle Heat Through a Thermoelectric GeneratorArshon R. KeyaniCarden Day School of San Jose, 7th GradeTable of Contents?Abstract 4Problem 5Research 5Specify Requirements 6Brainstorm, Evaluate, and Choose Solution 6Methods 6Materials 6Procedures 7Results 8Analysis 8Conclusion 8References 9?AbstractLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan.Keywords: Lorem, ipsum, dolorCharging a Phone With Candle Heat Through a Thermoelectric GeneratorProblemA major problem in the modern world is our dependence on fossil fuels. Someday, there will be no more oil to power our cars and factories.
Even worse is heat, a form of energy, escapes after burning the fossil fuels. When oil is burned, its exhaust (carbon dioxide) is harmful to our atmosphere because it causes global warming. Global warming is making our ice caps melt. This is bad for our ecosystem, and it also unhealthy to breathe in. If we could somehow use the heat coming from the combustion of fossil fuels to power something, we would use less fossil fuels, delaying the exhaustion of fossil fuels and making the air cleaner. In my project, I used candle heat to charge a phone with a thermoelectric generator.
A thermoelectric generator on a larger scale could be put in a factory to convert the wasted heat from burning fossil fuels to electricity. The electricity could then be taken back to power part of the factory. This is advantageous for the factory because it will lessen their carbon footprint and will save them money that they would spend on fossil fuels.ResearchThere are three major thermoelectric effects. One of these is the Seebeck effect, which is taken advantage of in this project. It is named after Thomas Johann Seebeck, a Baltic German physicist who discovered this in 1821.
The effect states that a junction of two dissimilar metals maintained at a temperature difference will create a direct circuit. In this project, the direct circuit is used to charge a phone. In 1834, French physicist Jean Charles Athanase Peltier discovered the Peltier effect, stating that an electrical current would produce heating on one side and cooling on the other at the junction of two dissimilar materials.
This is very closely related to the Seebeck effect, only electricity is causing a temperature difference, not the other way around. Twenty years later, William Thomson identified the connection between the Peltier Effect and the Seebeck effect. Specify RequirementsThe only source of energy this device should use is the heat from the candles. Only cold water can be poured in the tin. This device should be able to make the phone show on its screen the message that it is being charged.Brainstorm, Evaluate, and Choose SolutionI considered using only a few thermoelectric plates to not need a thermoelectric regulator, but if some do not work, the phone would not charge. I also considered putting the device over a fire instead of over the candles, but it would be more expensive and would require more effort. I decided to use aluminum for the stand and some other parts because it has a higher melting temperature.
MethodsMaterialsThermally conductive glueThermoelectric platesVoltage regulatorSolderSoldering ironWire CutterWire StripperElectrical tapeSuper glueCardboardAluminumCandles LighterCold waterPhone ChargerProceduresGlue ten thermoelectric plates to the bread tin with the thermally conductive glue.Solder the wires coming from the plates and trim or strip them as necessary.Leave one of the ends unconnected.Put some electrical tape on the bread tin under the wire connections to prevent a short circuit.Bend a sheet of aluminum so it tightly hugs the rim of the tin and crosses over.Super glue the piece of cardboard onto the bottom of the voltage regulator.
Super glue the cardboard and voltage regulator piece to the aluminum.Plug the loose red wire into the negative port of the voltage regulator and the loose black wire into the positive port.Glue another piece of aluminum to the bottom of the thermally conductive plates.Bend another piece of aluminum to make a stand for the tin. Make sure the tin’s bottom is close to the candle flames that will go under it, but they should not be touching.Put as many candles as possible on the stand’s base and light them.Pour cold water into the tin.When the voltage regulator shows over ten volts, press a button to activate it.
Plug in your phone charger into the regulator’s USB port.ResultsNo work to date.AnalysisN/AConclusionN/AReferencesCalifornia Institute of Technology, (2017). Brief History of Thermoelectrics. Retrieved from http://www.thermoelectrics.caltech.edu/thermoelectrics/history.
html. Chandler, D., (2010). Explained: Thermoelectricity. Retrieved from https://phys.org/news/2010-04-thermoelectricity.html. McGraw-Hill, (2002) Seebeck Effect.
McGraw-Hill Concise Encyclopedia of Physics. (Vol. 1, pp. 595). United States of America. McGraw-Hill Companies, Incorporated.Rigden, J. (1996).
Electric Generator. Macmillan Encyclopedia of Physics. (Vol. 2, pp.
410-411). New York, NY. Macmillan Reference.Rigden, J. (1996). Thermoelectric Effect. Macmillan Encyclopedia of Physics.
(Vol. 4, pp. 1599-1600). New York, NY.
Macmillan Reference.Rigden, J. (1996). Transport Properties.
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New York, NY. Macmillan Reference.Rosen, J., (2004) Thermocouple. Encyclopedia of Physics. (Vol. 1, pp. 314-315).
United States of America. Joe Rosen, PhD.The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica, (1998). Seebeck Effect. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/science/Seebeck-effect.
