Experimental Investigation of Voltage and Air Velocity Effects on Sustainable Thermoelectric Air Conditioning

Abstract

Thermoelectric air conditioning (TEAC) systems are gaining attention as refrigerant-free, solid-state cooling technologies due to their compactness, low noise, and environmental benefits. However, their widespread application is constrained by low energy efficiency and the limited experimental understanding of the coupled influence of electrical and aerodynamic operating parameters. Most existing studies address thermoelectric cooling under isolated conditions or rely on theoretical modeling, leaving a clear gap in the experimental quantification of the interactive effects of applied voltage and air velocity on system performance. To address this gap, the present study experimentally investigates a laboratory-scale TEAC system equipped with four thermoelectric cooler (TEC) modules (model TEC1-12706). The system was tested under controlled conditions by varying the input voltage from 6 to 12 V and the air velocity from 1 to 3 m/s. Key performance indicators, including cooling capacity, power consumption, cold-side temperature, and coefficient of performance (COP), were systematically measured and analyzed. The results show that increasing the applied voltage from 6 to 12 V enhances cooling capacity by approximately 50.4%, while significantly increasing electrical power consumption, leading to a 59% reduction in COP due to intensified Joule heating. Conversely, increasing air velocity improves convective heat transfer, resulting in a COP enhancement of about 24% with relatively stable power input. The findings highlight a clear trade-off between cooling capacity and energy efficiency and identify a practical operating region for balanced TEAC performance.