Creating a Thermoelectric Generator to Charge Your Phone Using Candle Flames

In this project, we will be making a thermoelectric generator that can reliably charge your phone using nothing but the heat emitted from candle flames. This may seem like a novelty at first, but it could be genuinely useful in some very real situations. For example, if you are out camping and your phone runs out of juice, you could use the thermal generator to charge it back up over a camp fire. A little closer to home, it could come in handy if there's ever a power outage, and you could make some hot chocolate whilst you're at it.

To get started with this project, we will need 10 thermoelectric plates. These are usually used in devices like portable drinks coolers and work by essentially moving heat from one side of the plate to the other when electricity is applied. This means that when the hot side is kept cool with a heatsink, the temperature of the cold side, from which the heat is being removed, can drop low enough to freeze water. Most interestingly, these plates can also be used to generate electricity by heating up one side and cooling down the other. This is called the Seebeck effect, and we will be taking advantage of this in this project.

The thermoelectric plates are surprisingly cheap, so I've placed international purchasing links in the description for those who want to buy them. When you choose yours, you'll need to make sure that the base is large enough to accommodate all ten plates, which need to be stuck to the bottom of the tray with the printed text facing upwards. We will use thermally conductive glue for this, and we need to use enough of it so that the glue spreads to the edges when the plates are squashed down.

You'll notice that the red and blue wires on the plates are different, as they carry different types of electricity. You'll also see a small metal strip connecting the two sides of each plate - this is where the heat transfer occurs. When you put the plates together, you need to make sure that the hot side touches the negative terminal of the battery and the cold side touches the positive terminal. This is because thermoelectric generators work by converting heat into electricity, so when the cold side is at a lower temperature than the hot side, it generates an electric potential.

To assemble the plates together, we will need to solder them in place. We can use wire or a small piece of copper tubing to connect the two sides of each plate. Once you have assembled all ten plates, make sure they are securely attached to the tray and that there are no gaps between them.

Now it's time to create the stand for our generator. To do this, we will need some aluminium rod and some wire. We can bend the rod into shape to fit the tray and attach the wires to hold everything together. You can customise its dimensions to fit the tray that you use, but height wise, you need to get the tray fairly close to the candle flames without them actually making contact, as that would cause things to get sooty.

It's time to try out our generator! We will light some candles and place the generator on top of them. Pouring cold water into the tray is crucial, as it allows the temperature difference between the hot and cold sides of the plates to increase. As the power increases, the voltage display should light up too, and it should continue to rise as the temperature difference increases.

Once over 10v, we can plug in the device we want to charge, and press the regulator's power button to activate it. The device should now start charging! It's not quite as quick as a fast charger, as it only delivers about one and a half watts, but that's not too bad at all considering that it's being generated by the heat from the candles.

To keep the temperature difference high, the water does need to be refreshed when it gets warm. This needs to be done every 10 minutes or so. If you were to use something like snow or ice instead, it would not only last longer but initially generate significantly more power, so that's something to keep in mind for the winter months.

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"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enIn this video we'll be making a thermoelectricgenerator that can reliably charge your phoneusing nothing but the heat emitted from candleflames.The way this works is by using the temperaturedifference created between the candles underneath,and the cool water in the tray, to generateelectricity.At first this might seem a bit of a noveltyat first, but it could be genuinely usefulin some very real situations.For example, if you are out camping and yourphone runs out of juice, you could use thethermal generator to charge it back up overa camp fire.A little closer to home it could come in handyif there's ever a power outage, and you couldmake some hot chocolate whilst you're at it.However you choose to use it, this is a veryfun project and it doesn't take much timeto build, so let's get to it.By the way, if you like the quality look ofthe charging cables used throughout this video,stick around for your chance to win them,courtesy of the manufacturer Native Union.So, the first items we'll need for this projectare 10 thermoelectric plates.These are usually used in devices like portabledrinks coolers, and they work by essentiallymoving heat from one side of the plate tothe other when electricity is applied.This means that when the hot side is keptcool with a heatsink, the temperature of thecold side, from which the heat is being removed,can drop low enough to freeze water.Most interestingly, these plates can alsobe used to generate electricity by heatingup one side and cooling down the other.This is called the Seebeck effect, and iswhat we're going to be taking advantage ofin this project.They're surprisingly cheap as well, so I'veplaced international purchasing links in thedescription.Next thing we'll need is a metal tray to holdthe water - in my case I used a bread tin.When you choose yours, you'll need to makesure that the base is large enough to accommodateall ten plates, which need to be stuck tothe bottom of the tray with the printed textfacing upwards.We need to use thermally conductive glue forthis, and we need to use enough of it so thatthe glue spreads to the edges when the platesare squashed down.Again, you can find links to this glue inthe description.Now, you'll notice that the red and blackwires form pairs - these need to be solderedtogether, though if you don't have a solderingiron you could probably get away with twistingthem together if you leave yourself some extralength before trimming the wires down.When you reach one end, you can simply continuethe circuit by bridging it over to the otherplate like so.The wires at the opposite end can just beleft loose, as they will be later connectedto a voltage regulator.To stop our joints from touching the tin andshorting out, we can stick a strip of electricaltape to protect it from short circuits.Now, as we've connected all of our thermoelectricpads in series, the voltage could potentiallybe as high as 15v, which is too high for phoneswhich only need 5v.So what we'll need is the aforementioned voltageregulator, which takes this higher voltageand stabilises it at 5v - it even has a standardUSB socket so that we plug devices straightin with no messing around.Like the rest of the parts required for thisbuild, you can find purchasing links to itin the description.To keep it out of the way, we'll be mountingit over the tray using a strip of aluminium.I trimmed mine down from a larger piece byfirst scoring it with a knife, and then bendingit repeatedly until it split.I then used some pliers to bend over the edgesso that it hooks tightly over the rim likeso.Now we can insert the wires into the voltageregulator's input, and clamp them in place.Because of the way we've stuck on the pads,the polarity of them is inverted, so in thiscase red is negative, and black is positive.It is always worth confirming this with amultimeter before use however.When we glue it to the aluminium, we can sticka piece of cork in between to act as an insulator.The regulator can then be glued down on top.Our generator is now almost complete, butbefore we try it out we need to make a littlelip to help catch more heat.To do this, we can get another piece of aluminiumthat's large enough to cover the plates withsome room to spare.We can then score some lines about a centimetrein from the outer edges, and bend them slightlydownwards to make a lip.Looks pretty snazzy - especially with therounded edges, which were made simply witha file.This can then be glued to the plates usingsome more thermally conductive glue.After you've done this I recommend that youclamp it all together so that it makes a tightthermal bond, leaving it for about 12 hourswhilst the glue dries.After it's set the generator should be lookingsomething like this, and the only thing leftto do is make the stand.To make it we can again use some aluminium,and bend it into shape.You can customise its dimensions to fit thetray that you use, but height wise you needto get the tray fairly close to the candleflames without them actually making contact,as that would cause things to get sooty.Although it's quite a simple stand, it's surprisinglyquite rigid.Now it's ready to try out!So we can get as many candles as will fitinside our base, carefully light them all,and then place the generator on top.Now we can pour some cold water into the trayand wait for the generator to kick in.In a few seconds, the little LED on the regulatorshould start to glow.As the power increases, the voltage displayshould light up too, and it should continueto rise as the temperature difference increases.Once over 10v, we can plug in the device wewant to charge, and press the regulator'spower button to activate it.The device should now start charging!It's not quite as quick as a fast charger,as it only delivers about one and a half watts,but that's not too bad at all consideringthat it's being generated by the heat fromthe candles.To keep the temperature difference high, thewater does need to be refreshed when it getswarm, which needs to be done every 10 minutesor so.If you were to use something like snow orice instead, it would not only last longer,but would initially generate significantlymore power, so that's something to keep inmind for the winter months.So, that's it for this project, but what aboutthat cable giveaway I mentioned earlier?Well, there are four cables you can win, allmade by Native Union, who specialise in qualityabove all else.They're really nicely made, so are probablythe only cables you'll ever own that are actuallygood to look at by themselves.They have some nifty functionality too.The casing of the Jump cable, for example,actually works as a charging buffer, so cangive you an extra 20% boost in battery powerwhen you don't have access to electricity.Alternatively, the Key cable doubles up asa key chain, so you'll always have it withyou when you're out and about.So, to be in with a chance of winning allfour of these cables, simply sign up to NativeUnion's newsletter with the link in the description.Good luck!So, I hope you've enjoyed this video.If you did, don't forget to hit that likebutton, and maybe consider subscribing ifyou haven't already.I'm Matt, and I'll see you next time.\n"