Computer-Aided Design of Thermal Energy Harvesting System across Pavement Structure

Long term monitoring of pavement requires a cost effective and sustainable power supply strategy. We developed an energy harvest system that can be installed in the pavement structure. The system can harvest energy from the temperature difference between the pavement surface and the subgrade soil using thermoelectric modules. In this paper, through computer-aided simulations, we come up with an optimum structural design for the energy harvesting system. The design will ensure a large thermal gradient for energy utilization. The system includes a 4cm×4cm×0.5cm aluminum plate and a 1m long aluminum rod, which is covered by 59cm long heat insulator from the top. Its output power estimated as up to 0.02W. The total energy that the system can produce is estimated to be in the order of 1000J per day.