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Old 30th August 2017, 03:10 PM
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27litres 27litres is offline
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Most satellites are solar powered. There's plenty of Sun around our neighbourhood and solar panels produce far more energy far more efficiently than thermoelectric generators.

Thermoelectric generators produce mere Watts of electricity at any realistic scale. They're mainly used in deep space probes which travel far enough away for the Sun's energy to become ineffective for solar panels.
They're expensive and use a rare form of radioactive isotope for the heat pile, though for power station use or car use, the radioactive isotope is irrelevant.
NASA are working on newer more efficient designs, but they're only 2-3 times more efficient - massive improvement, but still terrible compared to terrestrial alternatives.

Thermocouples are very inefficient at energy conversion (and you reckon internal combustion is inefficient!) and only aid in improving efficiency where there's a plentiful surplus supply of heat energy.
With thermal power stations, they chase the last joule of heat energy from the steam they produce before recovering and reheating that steam to further enhance plant efficiency. There's not a lot of latent waste heat floating around that system where stealing it for a thermocouple wouldn't result in reducing system efficiency. Maybe around the boilers/burners or condensers, but they'd be controlling even that heat quite tightly.

Plenty of waste heat in a car engine however, but a turbocharger is more efficient at using it!
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Current:
2001 Audi S8 - Brilliant Black with Black interior, C5 RS6 rims (whenever I actually put them on...), Solar Sunroof, Tinted side and rear glass, RNS-D, Grom, Bose, clunky old phone in arm rest!
2002 Audi S8 - Project
Replacement head coming arrived thanks to MJ
Silver with Black interior. All features as the '01, with the 'S' mode auto shifter. Dodgey rear tint (need to find a way to get rid of that).
Family:
2009 Volvo XC90 V8 R Design
- has a louder more obnoxious exhaust than the S8, sounds great! Love this thing - Q7 was double the price, and certainly not double the car!

Sold:
1997 Audi A4
- Hamilton's Club Sport, Achat Grey (will miss the old girl)

Last edited by 27litres; 30th August 2017 at 03:19 PM.
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