The Peltier Effect

Jacob McKenzie, Ty Nowotny, Colin Neunuebel

SRJC Engr45 - Fall 2005
History of the Seebeck effect

Discovered by Thomas Johann

Seebeck in 1821.

He accidentally found that a voltage

existed between two ends of a metal
bar when a temperature gradient
existed within the bar.
 The Seebeck Effect

A temperature difference causes diffusion of

electrons from the hot side to the cold side of a
conductor.

The motion of electrons creates an electrical

current.

The voltage is proportional to the temperature

difference as governed by:
V=α(Th-Tc)
where α is the Seebeck coefficient of the couple
 History of Peltier devices

The Peltier effect is named after Jean Charles Peltier (1785-

1845) who first observed it in 1834.

The Peltier effect had no practical use for over 100 years until
dissimilar metal devices were replaced with semiconductor
Peltiers which could produce much larger thermal gradients.
What is a Peltier Cooler?

Thermoelectric heat pumps that will produce a

temperature gradient that is proportional to an applied
current.
 Peltier Effect With Dissimilar
Metals
At the junction of two dissimilar metals the energy level of
conducting electrons is forced to increase or decrease.

A decrease in the energy level emits thermal energy, while an

increase will absorb thermal energy from its surroundings.

The temperature gradient for dissimilar metals is very small.

The figure of merit is a measure of

thermoelectric efficiency.
 Semiconductor Peltier

Bismuth-Telluride n and p
blocks

An electric current forces

electrons in n type and holes in
p type away from each other on
the cold side and towards each
other on the hot side.

The holes and electrons pull

thermal energy from where they
are heading away from each
other and deliver it to where
they meet.
 Device Construction

Individual couples are

connected in series
electrically and in parallel
thermally.

Couples are thermally

connected by a ceramic that
has high electrical resistivity
and high thermal conductivity.
 Our Peltier:
Change in Temperature @ 12v
Temperature and Temperature Difference
as a Function of Time
160.00

140.00

120.00
Temperature (¡F)

100.00
Hot Side
80.00
Cold Side
60.00
Temp
Difference
40.00

20.00

0.00
0 200 400 600 800
Time (s)
 our peltier:
Temperature Gradient
Temperature Gradient as a Function of Voltage
Carnot Efficiency
70.00

60.00
Nc @ 12v:
50.00 =1-Tc/Th
Voltage vs
=1-283.6/342.3
Temperature, ¡C

Temp Diff
40.00
Cold vs V =17.1%
30.00 Hot vs V

20.00

10.00

0.00
0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00
Voltage, V
 Applications

Deep space probes

Microprocessor cooling

Laser diode temperature stabilization

Temperature regulated flight suits

Air conditioning in submarines

Portable DC refrigerators

Automotive seat cooling/heating

Radioisotopic Thermoelectric
Generator (RTG)
 Pros and Cons

Pros

Solid state (no moving parts)

No maintenance

Long service lifetime

Cons

Large electrical power requirements

Inefficient compared to phase change cooling

 References

http://www.its.caltech.edu/~jsnyder/thermoelectrics/history_page.htm

http://www.tellurex.com/12most.html

http://www.thermoelectrics.com/introduction.htm, Thermoelectric Materials

http://www.digit-life.com/articles/peltiercoolers/

http://www.heatsink-guide.com/content.php?content=peltierinfo.shtml, THE
HEATSINK GUIDE: Peltier Guide, Part 1

http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm