It is well known that the seats in a parked vehicle become very hot and uncomfortable on warm days. A new self-powered thermoelectric car seat cooler is presented to solve this problem. This study details the design and optimization of such a device. The design relates to the high level layout of the major components and their relation to each other in typical operation. Optimization is achieved through the use of the ideal thermoelectric equations to determine the best compromise between power generation and cooling performance. This design is novel in that the same thermoelectric device is utilized for both power generation and for cooling. The first step is to construct a conceptual layout of the self-powered seat cooler. Using the ideal thermoelectric equations, an analytical model of the system is developed. The model is validated against experimental data and shows good correlation. Through a non-dimensional approach, the geometric sizing of the various components is optimized. With the optimal design found, the performance is evaluated using both the ideal equations and though use of the simulation software ANSYS. The final design consists of a flat absorber plate embedded into the car seat with a thermoelectric attached to the back. A finned heat sink is used to cool the thermoelectric. The device is shown to generate enough power to provide a reasonable temperature drop in the seat. / Master of Science / It is well known that the seats in a parked vehicle become very hot and uncomfortable on warm days. A new self-powered thermoelectric car seat cooler is presented to solve this problem. The term thermoelectric refers to devices which convert thermal energy directly to electrical energy and can also convert electrical energy to thermal energy. This study details the design and optimization of such a device. Design relates to the layout and relationship of the major components. Optimization refers to the best use the given components to maximize power output and seat cooling. The final design consists of a flat absorber plate embedded into the car seat with a thermoelectric attached to the back. A finned heat sink is used to cool the thermoelectric. The device is shown to generate enough power to provide a reasonable temperature drop in the seat.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/83374 |
| Date | 22 May 2018 |
| Creators | Cooke, Daniel Benjamin |
| Contributors | Mechanical Engineering, Tian, Zhiting, Zuo, Lei, Huxtable, Scott T. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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