King Faisal University
College of Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering
“Design of a Thermoelectric Refrigerator”
By: Asim Alfridan, Mohammed Alsuwailem, Faleh Aldawsari, & Ahmad Alhamad
ABSTRACT
In the recent years, the need for refrigeration has
increased globally leading to more electricity usage
and production. We performed a full design analysis
of a thermoelectric refrigerator. The design
calculations showed that the total cooling load was
47.171 (W), and three thermoelectric modules of
type (TE-127-1.0-1.3) manufactured by TETechnology, each of cooling capacity 16.0513 (W)
were needed to meet the cooling requirements, on
the other hand the heat sink analysis and
calculations resulted that (5.375” Model) heat sink
manufactured by HeatsinkUSA would be suitable.
The refrigerator can be powered by different power
sources like solar, DC batteries and power supply.
INTRODUCTION
Al-Ahsa’s weather has one of the highest
temperature rates in the world and most of the
days during summer at daytime the temperature is
above 40oC . Consequently, the need for
refrigeration has increased, leading to more energy
consumption and more CO2 production. Besides,
conventional refrigerators consume high amounts
of electricity, produce harmful gases, occupy more
space because they are composed of many moving
parts. Therefore, a more efficient and eco-friendly
method of refrigeration that utilizes clean energy is
in need. Thermoelectric cooling based on the
Peltier’s effect which states that when a current
passes through the junctions of two dissimilar
conductors or semiconductors one end would
absorb heat (cold) and the other would emit heat.
Thermoelectric modules are small, consume less
space, less energy and environmentally friendly.
OBJECTIVES
 Design a thermoelectric cooler that is able
of cooling 1 L of water 10oC in 30 minutes.
 Construct a cost-effective prototype from
materials available in the local area and on
the internet.
 Test the unit’s performance.
RESULTS
 Module Test Experiments
The cold side of one module were tested at designed
voltage [13 Volt] and 2.5 A current. The following
results were obtained.
METHODS / MATERIALS
Different alternatives for cabinet, thermoelectric
module, heat sink, and power sources were studied
taking into account the limitations and constrains like
cost, availability of materials, time, difficulty to
manufacture the components and installation of the
final setup. The design procedure of thermoelectric
cooler usually follows the datasheet of the modules
provided by the manufacturer. The design starts by
calculating the cooling load and assuming the
temperature of the space inside the cabinet and the
cold and hot sides temperatures of the modules, then
full design calculations to select proper module,
number of modules, heat sink, power source, and all
accessories and instruments needed to build a
complete integrated system that is eco-friendly,
viable, effective and economically affordable.
CONCLUSIONS
 A thermoelectric refrigerator were designed
and manufactured.
 Thermoelectric is an efficient method for
cooling and its more suitable for certain
applications.
 The importance of thermoelectricity has
greatly increased due to its potential of
efficiently utilizing clean energy.
 The hot side heat sink is a critical part of
thermoelectric cooling system, it should be
well designed and installed to get good results
and efficient cooling.
REFERENCES
Figure 3: Module test results
1.
Refrigerator Test Experiments
Experiments will be conducted to test the refrigerator
performance, where the space temperature inside the
cabinet will be measured in case of no loading and full
loading. The suggested results should be similar to
results shown below.
2.
3.
4.
Figure 1: The selected modules
Figure 4: Refrigerator test suggested results
Figure 2: The cabinet.
D. M. Rowe, Ed., CRC handbook of
thermoelectrics. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor &
Francis, 1995.
J. H. Goldsmid, Thermoelectric refrigeration.
North Charleston, SC, United States:
Springer-Verlag New York, 2013.
H. S. S. Lee, Thermal design: Heat sinks,
thermoelectrics, heat pipes, compact heat
exchangers, ands solar cells. Chichester,
United Kingdom: Wiley, John & Sons, 2010.
J. C. Dixon, The shock absorber handbook,
2nd ed. Chichester, England: John Wiley,
2008.
Green Technologies
& Energy Efficiency
April 26, 2017