Experimental Study and Performance Analysis of Thermoelectric Cooler Using Solar Photovoltaic Energy

Abstract

Thermoelectric coolers need electrical energy to create temperature differences between the hot and cold sides; however, photovoltaic systems immediately convert solar radiation into electrical energy. The study is a combined (PV-TEC)—experimental study on a thermoelectric cooler operating by the Peltier effect to analyze and develop the TEC. One TEC was used, and its dimensions were (40*40*3.4) mm. The current required by the TEC is 6A and 12V DC. The thermoelectric cooler is electrically powered by a solar system consisting of two 660W solar panels, a solar charger and two 12V batteries. The results revealed a relationship between the coefficient of performance and the input energy, as the COP showed an increase as the input energy decreased, which is an essential factor for the cooling process. The temperature difference, which was the difference between ambient and cold temperatures, is related to the COP. The COP rises as the temperature difference decreases until it becomes stable. Moreover, the consumption current is an important factor in electronic devices, so the study focused on demonstrating the effect of the cold side temperature on the current, and an empirical equation was found between them. It has been found that a decrease in the temperature of the cold side leads to a sharp reduction in the consumption current until it stabilizes. The maximum coefficient of performance was 3.7436, obtained at the current 1.4 and cold side temperature of zero degrees centigrade. This high value of the coefficient of performance resulted from using curved fins to improve heat dissipation from the hot side.