Thermoelectric Refrigeration
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THE INTERNATIONAL CRYOGENICS MONOGRAPH SERIES Volumes in preparation
Very High Magnetic Fields Superconductivity for Engineers Cryogenic Laboratory Equipment Superconductivity in Elements, Alloys, and Compounds Specific Heats at Low Temperatures The Electrical Resistivity of Metals at Low Temperatures
D. H. Parkinson and B. Mulhall I. L. Olsen and S. Gygax A. I. Croft and P. V. E. McClintock
G. K. Gauze E. S. Raja Gopal G. T. Meaden
General Editors
Dr. K. Mendelssohn, F.R.S. The Clarendon Laboratory Oxford, England Dr. K. D. Timmerhaus University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado
THERMOELECTRIC REFRIGERATION H. J. Goldsmid, B.Sc., Ph.D., F.Inst.P. The General Electric Company Limited Wembley, England
Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 1964
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 64-7761 © 1964
Springer Science+ Business Media New York Originally published by Plenum Press in 1964. Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1964
ISBN 978-1-4899-5725-2 ISBN 978-1-4899-5723-8 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4899-5723-8
PREFACE During the nineteen-fifties, while rapid progress was being made on the development of the alloys of bismuth telluride as thermoelectric materials, there were forecasts that Peltier cooling might replace the conventional methods of refrigeration. This state of affairs has not come about and is unlikely to do so in the future. In the last three or four years there have been virtually no improvements in the figures of merit of thermoelectric materials for use at ordinary temperatures. While there is hope that better figures of merit will result from solid state research, it is difficult to see how thermoelectric cooling units can ever be as efficient as compressor units when the required cooling capacity is large. Thus, we must regard thermoelectric refrigeration, not as a competitor of the conventional methods, but rather as a complementary technique. It is particularly important for small-scale applications, and it is obvious that its potentialities in this field have not yet been fully exploited. One of the objectives of this book is, therefore, to encourage the more widespread use of thermoelectric refrigeration, in the applications for which it is most suitable, through a proper understanding of its limitations as well as its advantageous features. I have attempted to cover the whole subject, from the physics of thermoelectric materials to the engineering of devices, at a level that is appropriate for the nonspecialist reader. In spite of the intensive basic research that has been carried out, there is still plenty of scope for the discovery of new and better compounds and alloys, especially for use at low temperatures. The scientist who wishes to undertake research in this field should find the book useful as an introduction to the fundamental principles. It is with a view primarily to future prospects that I have included a chapter on the thermomagnetic effects, since Ettingshausen cooling at low temperatures seems to show great promise. The engineer or technologist who is respons
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