Device for converting heat energy into electrical energy with heat-sensitive molecules

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9667121-B2
Application number	US-201414892473-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 22, 2014
Priority date	May 24, 2013
Publication date	May 30, 2017
Grant date	May 30, 2017

Abstract

A device and method recovering heat energy and converting the heat energy into electrical energy by heat-sensitive molecules to which are connected magnetic particles, with the heat-sensitive molecules able to move the magnetic particles in relation to a conductive circuit to generate an induced current in the circuit.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A device for converting heat energy into electrical energy, comprising:
a support;
a conductive circuit wherein an induced current is intended to flow;
a set of magnetic particles which are magnetized and with a ferromagnetic material base, with the particles being connected to the support using a heat-sensitive attachment structure configured to maintain the magnetic particles in at least one first position with respect to the conductive circuit when the device is subjected to a first temperature,
the heat-sensitive attachment structure comprising heat-sensitive polymer attaching molecules of at least one first type, with the polymer attaching molecules being sensitive to temperature, such that, when the attaching molecules of the first type are subjected to a given variation in temperature from the first temperature to a second temperature, the attachment structure moves the magnetic particles from the first position to a second position with respect to the conductive circuit, with the movement of the magnetic particles from the first position to the second position inducing a current in the conductive circuit.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the attaching molecules of the first type are molecules that have a characteristic transition temperature located between the first temperature and the second temperature and are adapted when they are subjected to the given variation in the temperature to pass from a first configuration to a second configuration, the attaching molecules of the first type being further adapted to, when they are subjected to an inverse variation in the temperature between the second temperature and the first temperature, pass from the second configuration to the first configuration.

3. The device according to claim 2 , wherein in the first configuration the attaching molecules have a given affinity for water, hydrophilic or hydrophobic, in the second configuration the attaching molecules having an affinity for water that is the inverse of the given affinity.

4. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the attachment structure further comprises attaching molecules of at least a second type, the second type attaching molecules being sensitive to temperature.

5. The device according to claim 4 , wherein the magnetic particles are connected to a first zone of the support by attaching molecules of the first type and to a second zone of the support by attaching molecules of the second type.

6. The device according to claim 4 , wherein the attaching molecules of the second type are molecules that have a characteristic transition temperature located between a third temperature and a fourth temperature, the attaching molecules of the second type being further configured such that when they are subjected to a variation in temperature from the third temperature to the fourth temperature to change affinity for water.

7. The device according to claim 4 , wherein the attaching molecules of the first type have a given affinity for water at the first temperature, the attaching molecules of the second type having another affinity for water, inversely to the given affinity at the first temperature, the attaching molecules of the second type having a given affinity for water at a second temperature, the attaching molecules of the first type having an affinity for water inversely of the given affinity to the second temperature.

8. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the magnetic particles are connected to a first zone of the support by attaching molecules and to a second zone of the support by attaching molecules, wherein the conductive circuit is arranged on the support to form a conductive winding about an axis passing through the first zone and the second zone of the support, and forming a non-zero angle, or an orthogonal angle, in relation to a main plane of the support.

9. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the particles are formed of a body with a magnetic material base coated with an adhesive layer linked to the attaching molecules.

10. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the support is a substrate with a polymer material base.

11. The device according to claim 1 , wherein among the attaching molecules sensitive to the temperature are one or plural of the following polymers:
PolyNipam, Polyvinylcaprolactamc, Hydroxypropylcellulose, Polyoxazoline, Polyvinylmcthylether, Polyethyleneglycol.

12. A system for recovering and converting heat energy into electrical energy comprising:
the device for converting heat energy into electrical energy according to claim 1 ;
means for applying a variable heat flow to the device for converting heat energy into electrical energy.

13. A method for producing a device according to claim 1 , wherein the attaching molecules have a polymer base sensitive to the temperature, with the method comprising grafting magnetic particles to the molecules of polymer.

14. The method according to claim 13 , wherein the support is formed from a first substrate, comprising carrying out in the first substrate of at least one first cavity and of at least one second cavity around the first cavity, the attaching molecules being fixed in the second cavity, the conductive circuit being formed in the second cavity.

15. The method according to claim 13 , comprising:
fastening a first set of polymer attaching molecules sensitive to the temperature onto the first substrate;
fastening a second set of polymer attaching molecules sensitive to the temperature onto a second substrate, then assembly of the first substrate and of the second substrate to form the support.

Assignees

• Commissariat Energie Atomique
• Commissariat L Energie Atomique Et Aux Energies Alternatives

Inventors

• Aliane Abdelkader
• Coronel Philippe
• Poncelet Olivier

Classifications

• H03K2017/9706

  Inductive element · CPC title

• H02N11/002 Primary

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• H03K17/96

  Touch switches (specially adapted for electronic time-pieces with no moving parts G04G21/08) · CPC title

• H03K2217/96038

  Inductive touch switches · CPC title

• H02K99/10

  Generators · CPC title