MAJOR PROJECT REPORT

on
“THERMOELECTRIC COOLING”

Submitted by
ALOK RANJAN 1801227063
ADESH KUMAR ROUT 1801227036
FARHAAN AHMAD 1801227193
ARYAN KASHYAP 1801227119
MD. FAIZAN KHAN 1801227282
JADU SOREN 1801227218
MD. SHAJID KHAN 1921227030

Under the Supervision of

MR. MADHU P. R. PULAGAM
ASST. PROFESSOR
Department of Mechanical Engineering

Department of Mechanical Engineering

C.V. Raman Global University, Odisha
May, 2021

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 DECLARATION

This is to certify that the major project report entitled “THERMOELECTRIC COOLING” submitted by
GROUP NO. 04 comprising of ALOK RANJAN with Registration No.- 1801227063, ADESH KUMAR
ROUT with Registration No.- 1801227036, FARHAAN AHMAD with Registration No.- 1801227193, MD.
FAIZAN KHAN with Registration No.- 1801227282, ARYAN KASHYAP with Registration No.-1801227119,
JADU SOREN with Registration No.- 1801227218 and MD. SHAJID KHAN with Registration No.-
1921227030 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the 6th Semester award of Bachelor of Technology work
carried out by us under the supervision and guidance of MR. MADHU K. R. PULAGAM.

Project Coordinator
Department OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my immense gratitude and sincere thanks to “Major Project Mentor Mr. MADHU K. R.
PULAGAM” whose co-operative guidance has helped us in successful completion of this project on
“THERMOELECTRIC COOLING”. We have learnt a lot while researching on this topic .We also evince
thanks to all Mechanical Engineering Department personnel for their help.

SUBMITTED BY:-

ALOK RANJAN 1801227063

ADESH KUMAR ROUT 1801227036
FARHAAN AHMAD 1801227193
ARYAN KASHYAP 1801227119
MD. FAIZAN KHAN 1801227282
JADU SOREN 1801227218
MD. SHAJID KHAN 1921227030

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

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 Department of Mechanical Engineering
C. V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the work in this project report entitled

“THERMOELECTRIC COOLING" submitted by GROUP NO. 04 comprising of ALOK

RANJAN with Registration No.- 1801227063, ADESH KUMAR ROUT with Registration No.- 1801227036,
FARHAAN AHMAD with Registration No.- 1801227193, MD. FAIZAN KHAN with Registration No.-
1801227282, ARYAN KASHYAP with Registration No.-1801227119, JADU SOREN with Registration No.-
1801227218 and MD. SHAJID KHAN with Registration No.- 1921227030, in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the award of Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering is carried out
by them under my supervision and guidance.

MADHU K. R. PULAGAM
Department of MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
C. V. Raman Global University, Bhubaneswar

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 ABSTRACT

The thermoelectric effect is the direct conversion of temperature differences to electric voltage
and vice versa via a thermocouple. A thermoelectric device creates a voltage when there is a
different temperature on each side. Conversely, when a voltage is applied to it, heat is transferred
from one side to the other, creating a temperature difference. At the atomic scale, an applied
temperature gradient causes charge carrier in the material to diffuse from the hot side to the cold
side. This effect can be used to generate electricity, measure temperature or change the
temperature of objects. Because the direction of heating and cooling is affected by the applied
voltage, thermoelectric devices can be used as temperature controllers.

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 CONTENTS

1. Introduction
2. Principle
3. Basic Principle of Thermoelectric Effect
4. Seebeck Effect
5. Peltier Effect
6. Thomson Effect
7. Thermoelectric Module
8. Thermoelectric Material
9. Parameters
10. Cooling Performance
11. Thermoelectric Application
12. Advantages and Disadvantages
13. References

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 INTRODUCTION

Thermoelectric cooling uses the Peltier effect to create a heat flux at the junction of two different
types of materials. A Peltier cooler, heater, or thermoelectric heat pump is a solid-state active heat
pump which transfers heat from one side of the device to the other, with consumption of electrical
energy, depending on the direction of the current. Such an instrument is also called a Peltier
device, Peltier heat pump, solid state refrigerator, or thermoelectric cooler (TEC) and
occasionally a thermoelectric battery. It can be used either for heating or for cooling, although in
practice the main application is cooling. It can also be used as a temperature controller that either
heats or cools.
This technology is far less commonly applied to refrigeration than vapor-compression
refrigeration is. The primary advantages of a Peltier cooler compared to a vapor-compression
refrigerator are its lack of moving parts or circulating liquid, very long life, invulnerability to
leaks, small size, and flexible shape. Its main disadvantages are high cost for a given cooling
capacity and poor power efficiency (a low COP). Many researchers and companies are trying to
develop Peltier coolers that are cheap and efficient.

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 PRINCIPLE

Thermoelectric coolers operate by the Peltier effect (one of three phenomena that make up the
thermoelectric effect). The device has two sides, and when a DC electric current flows through
the device, it brings heat from one side to the other, so that one side gets cooler while the other
gets hotter. The "hot" side is attached to a heat sink so that it remains at ambient temperature,
while the cool side goes below room temperature. In special applications, multiple coolers can be
cascaded together for lower temperature, but overall efficiency (COP) drops significantly. The
maximum COP of any refrigeration cycle is ultimately limted by the difference between the
desired (cold side) and ambient (hot side) temperature (the temperature of the heat sink). The
higher the temperature difference (delta), the lower the maximum theoretical COP.
A Peltier cooler can also be used as a thermoelectric generator. When operated as a cooler, a
voltage is applied across the device, and as a result, a difference in temperature will build up
between the two sides. When operated as a generator, one side of the device is heated to a
temperature greater than the other side, and as a result, a difference in voltage will build up
between the two sides (the Seebeck effect). However, a well-designed Peltier cooler will be a
mediocre thermoelectric generator and vice versa, due to different design and packaging
requirements.

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 BASIC PRICIPLES OF THERMOELECTRIC EFFECT

The term "thermoelectric effect" encompasses three separately identified effects: the Seebeck
effect, Peltier effect, and Thomson effect. The Seebeck and Peltier effects are different
manifestations of the same physical process; textbooks may refer to this process as the Peltier–
Seebeck effect (the separation derives from the independent discoveries by French physicist Jean
Charles Athanase Peltier and Baltic German physicist Thomas Johann Seebeck). The Thomson
effect is an extension of the Peltier–Seebeck model and is credited to Lord Kelvin.

Joule heating, the heat that is generated whenever a current is passed through a conductive
material, is not generally termed a thermoelectric effect. The Peltier–Seebeck and Thomson
effects are thermodynamically reversible, whereas Joule heating is not.

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 SEEBECK EFFECT

The Seebeck effect is the electromotive force (emf) that develops across two points of an
electrically conducting material when there is a temperature difference between them. The emf is
called the Seebeck emf (or thermo/thermal/thermoelectric emf). The ratio between the emf and
temperature difference is the Seebeck coefficient. A thermocouple measures the difference in
potential across a hot and cold end for two dissimilar materials. This potential difference is
proportional to the temperature difference between the hot and cold ends

Fig 01. A thermoelectric circuit composed of materials of different Seebeck coefficients

The Seebeck effect is a classic example of an electromotive force (EMF) and leads to
measurable currents or voltages in the same way as any other EMF. The local current density is
given by

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DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
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 PELTIER EFFECT

When a voltage or DC current is applied to two dissimilar conductors, a circuit can be created
that allows for continuous heat transport between the conductor’s junctions. The Seebeck Effect-
is the reverse of the Peltier Effect. By applying heat to two different conductors a current can be
generated. The Seebeck Coefficient is given by:

x
=
dT / dx where is the electric field.

The current is transported through charge carriers (opposite the hole flow or with electron flow).
Heat transfer occurs in the direction of charge carrier movement. The total heat generated is not
determined by the Peltier effect alone, as it may also be influenced by Joule heating and thermal-
gradient effects. The Peltier coefficients represent how much heat is carried per unit charge. Since
charge current must be continuous across a junction, the associated heat flow will develop a
discontinuity if they are different. The Peltier effect can be considered as the back-action
counterpart to the Seebeck effect if a simple thermoelectric circuit is closed, then the Seebeck
effect will drive a current, which in turn (by the Peltier effect) will always transfer heat from the
hot to the cold junction. The close relationship between Peltier and Seebeck effects can be seen
in the direct connection between their coefficients:
A typical Peltier heat pump involves multiple junctions in series, through which a current is
driven. Some of the junctions lose heat due to the Peltier effect, while others gain heat.
Thermoelectric heat pumps exploit this phenomenon, as do thermoelectric cooling devices found
in refrigerator

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 THOMSON EFFECT

In different materials, the Seebeck coefficient is not constant in temperature, and so a spatial
gradient in temperature can result in a gradient in the Seebeck coefficient. If a current is driven
through this gradient, then a continuous version of the Peltier effect will occur. This Thomson
effect was predicted and later observed in 1851 by Lord Kelvin (William Thomson). It describes
the heating or cooling of a current-carrying conductor with a temperature gradient.

Fig 02. Thomson Effect

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 THERMOELECTRIC MODULE

Thermoelectric material should feature a high electrical conductivity σ, but low thermal
conductivity κ for good efficiency.
Most metals with good electrical conductivity also have good thermal conductivity.
Therefore best approach is Semiconductors for thermoelectric materials.

Fig 03 Semiconductor

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 THERMOELECTRIC MATERIAL

Strategies to improve thermoelectric include both advanced bulk materials and the use of low-
dimensional systems. Such approaches to reduce lattice thermal conductivity fall under three
general material types: Alloys: create point defects, vacancies, or rattling structures (heavy-ion
species with large vibrational amplitudes contained within partially filled structural sites) to
scatter phonons within the unit cell crystal; Complex crystals: separate the phonon glass from the
electron crystal using approaches similar to those for superconductors (the region responsible for
electron transport should be an electron crystal of a high-mobility semiconductor, while the
phonon glass should ideally house disordered structures and dopants without disrupting the
electron crystal, analogous to the charge reservoir in high-Tc superconductors; Multiphase
nanocomposites: scatter phonons at the interfaces of nanostructured materials, be they mixed
composites or thin film superlattices.

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 PARAMETERS

The quality of thermoelectric material is depending on thermoelectric power S, the electrical

conductivity σ and the thermal conductivity κ. The electrical conductivity defines as the internal
resistance and the related heating of the TEM which the thermal conductivity controlled the heat
that flow through the module from decreasing the temperature different between hot side and cold
side. However, the efficiency of the TEM depend on the thermoelectric figure of merit, ZT [9]:
ZT = S2σ/κ.. The characteristic of thermoelectric efficiency is the ratio of electrical energy
produced to the amount of thermal energy absorb from heat source. The figure of merit ZT is the
key of parameter that can increase the efficiency of TEC module. According to the TEC module,
the element that have poor electrical conductivity is lead to produce low TEC effect. In order to
increase the TEC efficiency, the figure of merit should be large. The larger figure of merit requires
low thermal conductivity but high electrical conductivity. Another parameter that relative to TEC
efficiency is power factor which concentrate on material performance on electron while thermal
conductivity produces at the end leg of TEC. The conflict properties to develop the higher ZT
and power factor of TEC material are optimized and considered as below: • ZT about 1 is
inefficient; • ZT=2 is able to recover waste heat; • ZT=4/5 is able to match the refrigerator

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 COOLING PERFORMANCE

Various researchers has obtain the cooling performance from TEC by optimizing the
size, material, cooling capacity and the temperature different for improving the COP
of TEC [10]. The cooling COP of TEC is depending on the current through the
module and the temperature difference between two side of TEM. The COP of TEC is
considering the temperature of cold side.

Low Cooling capacity Dongxiang Gang conducted an experiment of thermoelectric

cooling system with phase change material (PCM) heat storage. They found that the
maximum COP value achieved is 1.22 at 7℃ temperature. The COP of TEC can highly
perform when low cooling capacity and maximum capacity has achieved at 210W. The
experimental result shows that the energy saving from this combination is 35.3% under
an outdoor temperature range from 30-33℃. The heat sink will decrease the hot
temperature. This process basically increases the performance efficiency of the system
and the result state that the average COP of the cooling system is 56% and increase
from 0.5 to 0.78. Both combinations show that the TEC system has good integration
with PCM for cooling application and at the same time increases the COP.

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 Thermal Resistance The temperature that passes from hot side and cold side of TEC
module usually can be used to evaluate the cooling performance.Huanget al [14]
verified that the performance curve and basic properties of TEC were measured. Than
the system selected the parameter design of thermoelectric cooler that used thermal
resistance of the heat sink to remove out complicated heat transfer from the system. The
optimum cooling capacity and optimum COP could be determined more accurately
using the thermal resistance because it can release the waste heat from cold side to the
ambient.

Multistage TE Module The COP of the cooling system will decrease when the
dissimilar temperature is increased, but the usage of multistage thermoelectric module
can improve its performance. The researchers reported that the difference performance
between single module and multistage module is about 35.8%. The multistage module
may lead to the maximization of the cooling efficiency with appropriate number of
stages with cascaded thermoelectric cooler modules.

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 THERMOELECTRIC APPLICATION

TE device is considered as successfully commercialized due to high reliability, low

weight and less maintenance. Thermoelectric offers two primary applications, one is for
renewable energy utilization and second is for generating electricity with waste energy
during heating or cooling process. This module can operate as a cooler or electricity
generator. Cooler mode allows the module to transform the current flow to the
temperature difference.direct current to temperature gradient. Meanwhile, electricity
generator mode allows the module to produce electricity caused by the temperature
gradient.

Air Conditioner Thermoelectric air conditioner is simple, convenient system and

environmentally friendly. The cooling and heating mode is easily changed by reversing
the current input. Nevertheless, the system is costly. The low (COP) of thermoelectric
is the factor that limits its application for domestic cooling even though the
thermoelectric air conditioner (TEAC) is noiseless and compact. The COP of cooling
performance of an air conditioner can highly performance depends on the absorption of
heat from thermoelectric converter.

Refrigerator A refrigerator installed with a TE system used Peltier cooling principle to

provide a quick cooling cycle which can reduces the of electrical charges in the
thermoelectric material. This principle is noiseless, reliable, has low cost of production
and has the merit of being light. One interesting additional application for refrigerator
where the solar cell operated in tandem with thermoelectric device through photovoltaic
effect that receive solar energy from solar cell and then converts it to electricity.

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 Electronic Cooling Device An ice-free portable cooling system such as a picnic cooler
and portable food and beverages cooler can be implemented with a TEC module. The
thermoelectric system is also used to control the cooling of an electronic components
of industrial equipment with limited cooling capacity that less than 1000W.

Power Generation Thermoelectric modules can also be used as a power generator.

Recent researcher evaluated the performance of TE module in terms of consistency,
power output and conversion efficiency. The cost can be reduced to 0.02/kWh.
Thermoelectric generator is to produce electricity by harvesting waste heat from the
thermoelectric system. Therefore, the heat waste also can generate high potential
electric. Due to the electricity produced the steelwork industry and automobile engines
are applied the heat waste as as energy sources.

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 ADVANTAGES

• Very Reliable – 10^5 Hours operation @ 100°C

• Multi purpose- Heating : Cooling : Power Generation from same module
• Orientation free- Can work in any orientation even in 0 gravity environment
• Small and noiseless-Don’t produce any noise and is light wt. and compact
• Precise temp. control- Tempreture controlled with input current [0.1°C accuracy]
• Environmental friendly- No use of harmful gases

DISADVANTAGES

• Very less efficient [6-15%].

• Performance degrades for large temp. gradients.
• Domino effect – Since junctions in Electrical Series connection.
• Limitations if used in larger quantity.

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 CONCLUSION

An extensive literature review has been carried out on the cooling performance of TEC and its
application to appliances. At this point, the specific result of the flexibility aspect of TEAC
technique found that the solution about the conventional air conditioner problem such as noise,
size and vibration can be overcome by TE module. For many years, Bismuth Telluride (BiTe) is
the best ZT that equal to 1 which the efficiency is about 5-7% for most application but still not
suitable for temperature over 230℃ because it can fall off rapidly at the hot side of TEC.
However, the performance of BiTe is still classified low so the another material should be studied
to get better performance of TEC. In addition, TEC has not affected the environment since there
is zero emission of carbon dioxide gas. The TEC is widely used as a cooling source for many
applications. TEC would be an effective cooling and heating device with the proper design
system. Finally, the proper mathematical model of TEC need to obtain for more effectiveness
performance of cooling and heating specially to determining the thermal performance under
actual working environment. The appropriate control design required to be implemented.

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 REFERENCES

[1] https://eng.libretexts.org/

[2] http://www.customchill.com/thermoelectric-cooling-systems/

[3] Advantages of Thermoelectric Cooling - Thermoelectric (ferrotec.com)

[4] (PDF) Thermoelectric Cooling (researchgate.net)

The Peltier Effect and Thermoelectric Cooling (uaf.edu)

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