Design and Manufacturing of Thermoelectric Mini Portable Refrigerator using Autodesk Fusion 360 and Additive Manufacturing

Abstract

The objective of this project is to develop portable thermoelectric refrigeration whose casing is designed using Autodesk Fusion 360 and manufactured by 3D printing. This refrigerator consists of thermoelectric module as cooling generator along with insulated cabin, thermostat and charging unit. Thermoelectric elements perform the same cooling function as Freon-based vapour compression or absorption refrigerators. The design of the refrigeration is based on the principle of thermoelectric module (i.e. Peltier effect) to create a hot side and a cold side. The cold side of the thermoelectric module is used for refrigeration purposes. On the other hand, the heat from the hot side of the module is rejected to the surroundings with the help of heat sinks and fan. Based on the heat load calculations, the thermoelectric module is selected. The system is fabricated and experimentally tested for the time taken to cool to the required temperature. The results showed that the system can maintain the temperature of approximately 10 °C with minimum power consumption of 64 Watt.