Measuring of thermal characteristics for Peltier thermopile using calorimetric method

In this article there is presented a technique of calorimetric measurement for Peltier thermopile (PT) characteristics with minimum requirements concerning the measuring equipment (calorimetric tank, temperature sensors, multimeters, PC). In order to obtain relations among a temperature difference, an electric current and a total cooling power output there was a set of measurements performed. According to the measurements it was able to achieve the temperature characteristics of the cooling power output and to evaluate the coefficient of performance (COP) during a cooling process. The measuring process is fully automated. And it uses a spontaneous increase of a temperature difference between PT plates and a regulator keeping a constant temperature of a hot side in the cooling device. An analysis of the calorimetric vessel thermal resistance in dependence on the temperature boundary conditions is very important for an insulation of a heat transfer media. In this paper there is this analysis performed analytically using a numerical simulation by means of the software product ANSYS CFX and the obtained results are compared with the experimental data. The measured thermal characteristics consist of a dependence of the cooling power output and the COP on the temperature differences at the constant temperature level 333.15 K of the hot plate and at the electric current values 2 A, 4 A and 6 A. The proposed measuring method, as well as the results published in this article, can be utilized for a design optimisation of equipment with the installed PT, which serves as a cooling element. An application of the calorimetric approach for measuring of characteristics is also suitable for a cascade interconnection of the PT, where it is necessary to set up the supply electric currents correctly in order to reach the maximum COP. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.