DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

PERFORMANCE INVESTIGATION OF A
SOLAR POWERED THERMOELECTRIC
REFRIGERATOR

Submitted by :
Akash Biradar 1NH15ME005
Under guidance of :
Prof.Ravi Kumar M Ajay S 1NH15ME004
(Senior Asst. Professor) Tejandra Naidu V 1NH14ME135
Darshan Ganesh 1NH15ME038
 Contents
Literature review
Literature summary
Problem statement
Abstract
Design
Materials used
Calculations
 LITERATURE REVIEW

In recent years, many researchers have worked on Peltier

cooling, developing the system based on peltiercooling.

[1] R. Saidur, H.H. Masjuki, M. Hasanuzzaman, T.M.I.

Mahlia, C.Y. Tan, J.K. Ooi and P.H. Yoon (2008) they
have studied that, a thermoelectric refrigerator which is
developed in standalone photovoltaic system for domestic
usage has been presented in this paper. The photovoltaic
sizing required for efficiently running the thermoelectric
refrigerator with energy consumption 520Wh is including 4
solar modules of 5.7A, 17.5V and100W; 4 lead acid batteries
of 12V and 100Ah, a solar charge controller of 12A and 24V;
and an inverter of 24V and 150W .
[2]Mayank Awasthi and K V Mali (2012) worked
on designing of a thermoelectric refrigerator
which was able to achieve a temperature of 15˚C
with an ambient temperature of 32˚C. They
achieved this result with a run time of 52 minutes
with a 12V TE module (TEC-127-06L). Usable
volume of the setup was 5.12 L with polyurethane
foam of 20 mm thickness as insulation material.
[3] Pushkarny B.H et.al. (2016) worked on thermoelectric
refrigeration with solar panels.
This project’s aim is to investigate the feasibility and produce
prototype of a rapid-cooling device using Peltier technology.
our first main step is selection of right peltier module.
Its operating temperature must be within required limits.
Heat rejected by hot side of module should be less than its
total power capacity.
For desired cooling proper heat sink should be provided on
hotter side.
Peltier module should be selected according to the volume
which has to be cooled.
They were able to achieve 11.7˚C reduction in temperature
with their setup in 30 minutes runtime. The solar panel used
to power the setup was 20W and consisted of 72 sub-cells.
The Improvements made in this project:
Operates in any orientation. Not affected by gravity or
vibration .
[4] Prasad Chavan, Praveen Yenare, Sajid Shaikh
and Praveen Kiran Mali (2017) worked on
designing of a thermoelectric refrigerator which was
able to achieve a temperature of 15˚C . The overall
short term aim was to develop a small, inexpensive
and compact cooler box.
The main objectives of this project were :
• To investigate the cost and effectiveness of the
design or TEC module
• To look at commercially available 12V DC cooler
boxes.
• To make eco-friendly refrigeration system.
 LITERATURE SUMMARY

[1] A thermoelectric refrigerator which is developed in stand

alone photovoltaic system for domestic usage. The performance
of this refrigerator can be improved by adding insulation to the
refrigerator’s body as well as improving its heat exchanger
efficiency.

[2] The objective project is to achieve the long term cooling in

case of power failure for refrigerator.
A TER Cooling system is has been designed and developed to
provide active cooling with help of single stage 12 V TE module
is used to provide adequate cooling
[3]The TE devices can act as coolers, heat pumps, power
generators, or thermal energy sensors and are used in
almost all the fields such as military, aerospace, instrument,
biology, medicine, industrial or commercial products. The
major challenge faced in TE cooling is lower COP especially
in large capacity systems.
The minimum temperature achieved was found to be 15◦c
for cooling and the maximum temperature was 65◦c for
heating in this experiment.

[4]Thermoelectric refrigerators can reduce the dependence on

conventional refrigerators. Also, they are low on cost and
ecofriendly. Through experiments, it has been concluded that
a minimum of 15 degree temperature can be achieved with
this kind of set up which can be useful for preservation of
foods and vaccines. Further improvements in the design are
possible.
 PROBLEM STATEMENT
 In diabetes medical survey says that in 2020, 8 crores
people will be a diabetic patient in the world. It is
specially designed for preserving insulin and other
medicines.
 It may be implementing in the medical field. The paper
reports on an effort to develop a portable refrigerator
kit using thermoelectric cooling is the solution for
maintaining at particular temperature level at any time
with low cost.
 This is most effective for poor people (by the cost) and
travelling people (because of size).
 The project study and experimental analysis of portable
refrigerator under study due to following disadvantages
of conventional refrigerators. They are bulky, power
rating was high.
 Conventional refrigeration system bigger in size and
costly.
ABSTRACT :
From last century till now refrigeration has been one
of the most important factors of our day to day life.
The current tendency of the first world is to look at
renewable energy resources as a source of energy.
This is done for the following two reasons; firstly, the
lower quality of life due to air pollution; and,
secondly, due to the pressure of the ever increasing
world population puts on our natural energy
resources. From these two facts comes the
realization that the natural energy resources
available will not last indefinitely. The basic idea is
implementation of photovoltaic driven refrigerating
system powered from solar panel.
In the recent years, we have many problem such as
energy crises and environment degradation due to the
increasing CO2 emission and ozone layer depletion has
become the primarily concern to both developed and
developing countries. Our project utilizes the solar
energy for its operation. Solar refrigeration using
thermoelectric module is going to be one of the most cost
effective, clean and environment friendly system. This
project does not need any kind of refrigerant and
mechanical device like compressor, prime mover, etc for
its operation. The main purpose of this project is to
provide refrigeration to the remote areas where power
supply is not possible.
 MATERIALS USED :
Peltier Unit :

The Peltier unit used in this fridge is TIC 12073. This unit works
on 5 volts DC and takes maximum current of 4 amps at full load.
The power rating of this unit is 20 watts.
TOGGLE SWITCH WITH LED :

An on/off toggle switch has been used in the fridge for having
the control over the power supply being given to the fridge. This
switch is rated at 6 amps.
Cooling Fan :

We are using two Cooling fans in our refrigerator which are

respectively mounted on one heat sink each. The main purpose
of a cooling fan is to dissipate heat from the heat sink by
taking in fresh air. The fans used in this fridge work on 12
volts DC and draws 0.18 amps. The power consumption of
each fan is 2.16 watts.
Heat Sink :

A heat sink is a passive heat exchanger that cools a device by

dissipating heat into the surrounding medium. The heat sink
is generally made up of aluminum. The heat sink used in this
fridge is of the dimension 7.5cm X 8cm X 4.5 cm (L x B x H).
Insulation Material :
Two materials have been used as insulator in
constructing the body of refrigerator. For preventing air leakage proper
fixing has been done. The two materials used are given as follows.

Thermocol :

As we know the ice vendors take advantage of Thermocol for its

economic value and good insulation property as it does not allow the
inner temperature of cooling medium to go down. Hence it is also an
economic source of insulation.
Aluminium foil :

Aluminium foil is widely used for thermal insulation (barrier

and reflectivity), heat exchangers (heat conduction) and cable
liners (barrier and electrical conductivity). In this fridge
aluminium foil plays two roles. First as it is on the inner side of
the fridge, it helps in keeping the fridge cool. Second it
prevents the inner side of the fridge to become wet .
Battery :
The battery used in this fridge has following specifications: 12
volt DC 7.5 ampere. hour .

In this fridge one battery is used as a time for the working of the
fridge. Also the extra connections for the second battery in the
fridge are also provided if more cooling is required.
Solar Charge Controller :

The batteries used in the fridge are rated at 12 volts DC, 7.5
Amperes. To charge these batteries from the solar panel, a
charge controller rated 12 volts, 10 amps is used as shown in
the figure.
 WORKING OF THE PROJECT
REFRIGERATOR :
 The fridge is provided power supply form a 12 volt DC 7.5
amperes battery.
 To start the fridge, the switch on the fridge is turned on.
 When the switch is turned on, a green led starts glowing
indicating that the fridge is now online.
 Now the Peltier thermoelectric devices which are insulated from
the cooling side and arranges in the fridge generates cooling
effect on inner side and heat is dissipated on outer side.
 On the heat side of the peltier unit, a heat sink along with the
fan works to dissipate the heat from the Peltier unit in the
outer environment.
 The Peltier thermoelectric device will be so arranged in a box
with proper insulation system and heat sink so that efficient
cooling takes place at all the time.
 To turn off the fridge, switch can be turned off. Then the red led
will start glowing indicating no power for the fridge.
 Applications
1. Medical field- Pharmaceutical industry, medicine and medical
equipment storage, etc.
2. Military- storing of consumable goods in war affected zones,
rural area, etc.
3. Dairy (milk) industry.
4. Mechanical industry.
5. Scientific and Laboratory Equipment— cooling chambers;
freezers; cooling incubators; temperature
stabilized chambers; cold laboratory plates and tables; thermo-
calibrators; stage coolers; thermostats;
coolers and temperature stabilizers for multipurpose sensors
6. Restaurant and hotel.
7. Vegetable, fish, fruit, beverage, etc. storage.
8. Electronic— miniature cooling units for incoming stages of
highly sensitive receivers and amplifiers;
coolers for high power generators, laser emitters and systems,
CCD cameras, parametic-amplfiers, vacuum and solid-state
photo detectors and CPU coolers.