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Thermoelectric modules are currently used both in Peltier cooling and in Seebeck mode for electricity generation. The developments experienced in both cases depend essentially on two factors: the thermoelectric properties of the materials that form these elements (mainly semiconductors), and the external structure of the semiconductors. Figure of Merit Z is currently the best way of measuring the efficiency of semiconductors, as it relates to the intrinsic parameters of the semiconductor: Seebeck coefficient, thermal resistance, and thermal conductivity. When it comes to evaluating the complete structure, the Coefficient of Performance (COP) is used, relating the electrical power to the thermal power of the module. This paper develops a Thermoelectric Generator (TEG) structure which allows minimising the response time of the thermoelectric device, obtaining short working cycles and, therefore, a higher working frequency.

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Available online xxxThe aim of this paper is to develop and manufacture a thermoelectric structure operating in Peltier mode with non-standard materials, using a Finite Element Model. Thus, both the reliability of the Finite Element Model and the correct development and design of the new thermoelectric structure are ascertained, achieving a dual goal of our research group. This work provides a very good correlation between simulated and experimental results, and corroborates that the material's performance has a decisive influence on the thermoelectric properties of the structure in the temperature range of study considered.

Around 1801, Francisco Terrés i Serra designed and developed a sustainable wave-powered flour mill in Vilanova i la Geltrú, a town located on the Mediterranean coast south of Barcelona, Spain. The mill, which was located on the seashore, consisted of a system of paddles driven by waves that provided the energy necessary to pump sea water to a a gathering pond located at a height of five metres above sea level. This water was then fed to a wooden waterwheel that, via a lantern wheel, turned two sets of millstones in the upper room of the mill where the flour was ground.The mill is now located more than 50 metres from the water line due to the sedimentation of the coastline caused by the construction of nearby breakwater walls. Only a small part of the building is still standing, however, and there are no traces of the original hydropower or pumping systems.Using information gathered by the historian Francisco Conde and original plans of the mill obtained from the Navy Command in Barcelona, we created a virtual reconstruction of the flour mill complex and its hydraulic components and a 3D simulation of how the mill operated.