Numerical Study on Cooling Performance of Aerocraft Annular Thermoelectric Cooler

In order to study the influence of transient characteristics of annular thermoelectric cooler (ATEC), a 3D model of ATEC was established based on the coupling effect of thermal-electric-force multiple physical fields. The effects of key parameters on the transient characteristics of annular thermoelectric cooler under different operating conditions were analyzed by using Bi2Te3 semiconductor material at P/N stage, and the variation rules of the cold junction temperature Tc and von Mises stress were obtained. By changing the ATEC heat transfer coefficient (h), input current (I) and cold load (Qc), cold junction sub-cooled temperature, stable temperature, and von Mises stress distribution at cold end under different conditions were analyzed to obtain the transient characteristics of ATEC operation. The structure of the ATEC thermoelectric arm size (La and Φ) is optimized. The results show that when the length of the ATEC thermoelectric arm is 2 mm and the Angle of the thermoelectric arm is 7◦, the lowest cold end temperature of ATEC is 277.92 K and the stable temperature is 284.09 K. The maximum von Mises stress was 67.99 MPa. It can meet the yield strength and enhance the heat dissipation capacity of airborne devices, which provides theoretical guidance for practical engineering applications and thermoelectric cooling research. © 2024 Science Press. All rights reserved.