TECHNICAL RESEARCH
HOW TO BUILD THE SOLAR ICE DEVICE
HOW PELTIER DEVICES AND TEC WORK
This video does an exceptional job of explaining how a peltier device works (9:05-15:00). The mini fridge built in this video (37:01-end) will be our base model for designing the direct-solar powered ice machine.
HOW TO IMPROVE A TEC
This video builds on the previous of some advancements that can be made for a TECÂ to improve the heat sink's abilities. We will be incorporating some aspects of this to acheive ice production.
PELTIER DEVICE
Thermoelectic Cooler
The great thing about this technology is that it is "solid state", which essentially means there are no moving parts or liquids; this makes it invulnerable to leaks and has a long life span. However, peltier devices are not energy efficient and are fairly expensive. In order for us to build a freezer with this device we will need to be able to dissipate the heat and concentrate the cool.
A peltier device can produce a maximal temperature difference of 70 degrees C, in general the more heat being moved, the less efficient it becomes. It's more akin to being called a "heat pump" than a "cooling device". The amount of heat that can be absorbed is proportional to the current and time given the following equation:
Q=P*I*t
where:
P - the peltier coefficient (dependent on temperature and the materials of the TEC)
I - the current
t - time
[source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermoelectric_cooling ]
