A phase change material-based thermoelectric generation system for near-earth satellites: Enabling continuous power supply and thermal regulation

Abstract

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites experience extreme temperature fluctuations due to the alternating day–night cycles, making it challenging for traditional power supply systems to ensure continuous power generation. This work presents a novel thermoelectric generation (TEG) system incorporating phase change materials (PCM) and a decoupled equivalent filling model. Unlike conventional 3D FEM approaches that often suffer from convergence issues and high computational cost, the proposed model simplifies thermal–electric coupling while achieving a temperature error of less than 1.05% and a power error of less than 1.4% under high heat flux conditions. The system also analyzes the balance between solar radiation absorption and thermal dissipation in circular LEO. By incorporating PCM, the system achieves temperature stabilization (fluctuation $<$ ±5 °C) and efficient waste heat utilization. Using a transient finite element model, the optimal operating performance of the TEG module was investigated at different orbital altitudes. Unlike conventional 3D FEM approaches that often suffer from convergence issues and high computational cost, the proposed model simplifies thermal–electric coupling while achieving a temperature error of less than 1.05% and a power error of less than 1.4% under high heat flux conditions. Although the current energy density of the system is relatively low (approximately 0.1 Wh/kg), future improvements in TEG efficiency and thermal management optimization could make this system a promising solution for providing reliable continuous power to LEO satellites.