Comparative performance for thermoelectric refrigerators with radiative and Newtonian heat transfer laws

Abstract

Models of multi-element thermoelectric refrigerator (TER) with radiative heat transfer law (RHT) and Newtonian heat transfer law (NHT) are established based on finite time thermodynamics. The sameness and difference of the characteristics with different form of heat transfer are compared by numerical examples. It is found that for two heat transfer models, there is a set of optimal variables, i.e., an optimal working electrical current (WEC) and an optimal ratio of thermal conductance (RTC) of heat exchangers corresponding to the maximum cooling load, and there is another set of optimal variables corresponding to the maximum coefficient of performance (COP). For the same heat reservoir temperature difference (HRTD), both the cooling load and COP with RHT is larger than that with NHT, the optimal WEC at maximum cooling load with RTH is lager than that with NTH, and the optimal WEC at maximum COP with RTH is almost the same as that with NTH. With the increase of HRTD, both of the optimal WECs at maximum cooling load with RTH and NTH decrease, and both of the optimal WECs at maximum COP with RTH and NTH increase. The study with different heat transfer model for TER is necessary.