Abstract
In our present civilization, forced convection cooling is used in wide-ranging situations from cooling
of microprocessors to that of heat engines. Active cooling is essential in such situations to avoid
thermal failure (for microprocessors) and maximize fuel-to-work conversion efficiencies (heat
engines). However, such active cooling causes rapid destruction of the exergy of thermal energy
transferred from the heat source. This issue has remained unaddressed despite the widespread use of forced convection cooling. In this study, to partially recover presently lost exergy in such
situations in the form of electricity, we integrate thermo-electrochemical conversion, which has
mostly been studied for statoinary conditions using a liquid electrolyte encased in a closed vessel,
into forced convection cooling. We design a test cell in which an electrolyte liquid is forced through
a channel formed between two parallel electrodes and the hot-side electrode simulates an object
that needs to be cooled. Through experimental and numerical investigations of the test cell, cooling
and power generation properties of such a forced-flow cell are elucidated. It is demonstrated that
such a forced-flow thermo-electrochemical cell can generate more electric power than the
hydrodynamic pump work required to drive the liquid through the cell.
