Experimental research on a semiconductor freezer utilizing two-stage thermoelectric modules

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental study on the performance of a semiconductor freezer for food and medicine preservation. The developed two-stage thermoelectric cooler (TTEC) for the freezer contains two-stage thermoelectric modules (TTEMs), a plate fin heat sink, and a heat pipe heat sink. The experiments were carried out for 37.8-liters freezer prototype in a standard climatic chamber. Effects of TTEC configurations on the refrigeration performance of the freezer at different ambient temperatures were experimentally evaluated. The tested results indicate that the lowest temperature inside the freezer cabinet can reach −14.9 °C in the optimal input current of 4.67A when the ambient temperature is 25 °C. and the largest temperature difference between both sides of the TTEMs is 62.1 K in the proper configuration. Furthermore, the evaluated refrigerating capacity of TTEC can reach the largest of 53.50 W, and the COPs of TTEM and freezer achieve the maximum values of 0.237 and 0.153, respectively. The experimental results mean that we extend the application field of thermoelectric cooling technology to the freezer, which provides the experimental basis for the research and development of thermoelectric freezers. In general, the performance characteristics of the developed semiconductor freezer with the TTEMs could demonstrate its potential for small freezing device applications.