FAQs

Q: Has there been independent verification of ENECO’s technology?
A: Independent, third party, confirmation of the performance of ENECO’s technology has been performed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).  To request a copy of their report please use CONTACT US.

Q: Are there any patents covering this technology?
A: Please see the patent list.

Q: Where can I read more about this technology?
A: Please see the publications list.

Q: Who are ENECO’s competitors?
A: Many established energy conversion companies and some with new technologies will compete for large markets and market share, but there are no direct competitors with similar technology.   

Q: What is your conversion efficiency?
A: There is no single answer to this question since it depends on the specific thermal conditions.  Although the ENECO technology has no moving parts, it is classified thermodynamically as a heat engine.  The French physicist Sadi Carnot showed that for an ideal heat engine the efficiency can be calculated knowing the values of two operating parameters, the temperature of the heat source and the temperature of the cold sink in the expression:

with temperatures expressed in absolute units. For more on the Carnot Principle see http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/carnot.html.  No real technology can achieve this ideal efficiency.  The measured, or absolute, efficiency of Thermal Chips is defined as the amount of electrical energy delivered to a load versus the thermal energy delivered to the chip given by the expression:

Experimentally ENECO and others find that Thermal Chips deliver about 40% - 50% of the Carnot value for a given set of operating temperatures. 

Q: How much power can be generated by Thermal Chips?
A: Estimated output power density for PbSnTe diodes, 0.5mm thick, with the cold side at 20°C is shown in the graph below as a function of temperature difference across the chip.  From the chart you can see that for a temperature difference of about 300°C the power density is about 9 Watts/cm2

Q: What do Thermal Chips look like?
A: The photo below shows a typical diode to the right of the penny.  The chip is about 1.0 mm x 1.0 mm square and 0.5 mm thick.  Thermal Chips have very high current densities, on the order of 1,000 A/cm2, so even a chip as small as the one in the photo will produce more than 10 Amps of current.  Therefore, individual chips of this size are well suited for most applications.  For information on how chips are assembled for specific applications see PACKAGING.

Q: Do you have any activities or operations outside the United States?
A: Two of our Directors are based in Europe, as are some of our investors.  We consider ourselves a part of the global economy and therefore we are working with potential customers in Europe and Asia as well as in the US.

Q: Are there any career opportunities at ENECO?
A: We are always interested in well-qualified and highly motivated people who might fit well with the existing team.  Please use CONTACT US to tell us about yourself.