Wine coolers’ refrigeration systems are usually conventional compressor units or thermoelectric units. A conventional compressor cooling system contains four fundamental parts - the compressor, condenser, throttle valve and evaporator. In simple terms, these parts work together to circulate and heat up a refrigerant which is then condensed and cooled, with the heat rejected and evaporated and the now cold refrigerant mixture lowering the temperature of the enclosed space it is in. In contrast, thermoelectric cooling systems are solid state semiconductor devices without moving parts, fluids, chlorofluorocarbons or other chemicals or gases. Put simply, electrons moving through the semiconductor material absorb heat and move it to the hot, expelling end of the unit cooling the air in the enclosed unit.

Thermoelectric coolers have several advantages over conventional compressor units including:

• Thermoelectric coolers have no moving parts, which results in less vibrations, a more silent operation and virtually maintenance free operations
• Thermoelectric wine refrigerators are more environmentally friendly because they don’t release ozone depleting chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons or other gases
• Thermoelectric coolers’ solid state design allows them to take up less floor space, plus they are lightweight
• Thermoelectric coolers don't cycle on and off and have smaller temperature fluctuations and more precise temperature control (+/- 0.1 degree Celsius)
• Thermoelectric coolers have high reliability with tests showing lives greater than 200,000 hours (almost 23 years)
• Thermoelectric coolers work best with relatively steady state cooling temperature demands and where power is supplied to the unit on a uniform basis, like wine coolers

However, compressor based systems are more efficient at cooling than thermoelectric units (estimated at 4 to 12 times more efficient) and can withstand more adverse conditions. Thus, thermoelectric cooling units are generally used more in environments where cooling demands are not as onerous and where their solid state nature (no moving parts, quiet operation, maintenance-free) and smaller size outweighs pure cooling efficiency. Thermoelectric coolers are not meant for large cooling applications such as air conditioning units. Thermoelectric coolers are best suited to smaller cooling applications, like wine refrigerators.

Published 7/16/2009 12:00:00 AM

Tags: Thermoelectric Cooling, Compressor Cooling