JPH1093150A - Thermoelectric conversion device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve thermoelectric conversion performance by providing multiple jet nozzles for jetting a liquid heat moving medium on the opposite surface of a semiconductor supporting face, and providing escape recessed parts close to the velocity of the jet nozzles for allowing the jetted liquid heat moving medium to escape. SOLUTION: A thermoelectric conversion element group 3 is arranged between a heat absorbing side substrate 2 and a radiation side substrate 4. The lower end of the peripheral wall 10 of a cover member 6 is adhered to the periphery of the radiation side substrate 4 through an O ring 14, and a distribution member 7 is provided on the inner side of the cover member 6. An outer peripheral part 13 is erected on the dispersion member 7, and the multiple jet nozzles 17 having jet holes 16 are provided for a base part 15. The recessed parts 18 for escaping are formed around the respective jet nozzles 17, and they communicate one another and they are connected to a discharge port 19. When water 22 is supplied from a feed pipe 8, water 22 simultaneously extends at a first space 20, and it is jetted from the respective nozzles 17 to the radiation side substrate 4. Water 22 depriving heat of the radiation side substrate 4 moves to the recessed part 18 for escaping, is collected to a discharge port 19 and is discharged from the discharge port 19.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermoelectric converter such as an electronic cooling device or a thermoelectric generator, and more particularly to a thermoelectric converter using a fluid such as water or antifreeze as a heat transfer medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 7 and 8 are views for explaining a conventional thermoelectric converter. FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the thermoelectric converter.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 7, a heat absorbing side insulating substrate 100 and a heat radiating side insulating substrate 10 made of ceramics such as alumina are used.
1, a thermoelectric conversion element group 102 composed of electrodes and P-type and N-type semiconductor layers is interposed.

[0004] On the outer surface of the heat absorbing side insulating substrate 100,
A heat absorbing member 103 provided with heat absorbing fins or the like is attached. On the outer surface of the heat radiation side insulating substrate 101,
The flow path forming member 104 opened toward the substrate 101 side
Is attached. Inside the flow path forming member 104, water 105, which is a heat transfer medium, is placed on the heat radiation side insulating substrate 10.
A flow path forming member 104 composed of a partition plate for flowing in a meandering manner from one end to the other end along the outer surface of
Is provided. A supply pipe 107 is mounted near one end of the flow path forming member 104, and a discharge pipe 108 is mounted near the other end.

A predetermined current is supplied to the thermoelectric conversion element group 102, and water 105 is caused to flow from the supply pipe 107 into the flow path forming member 104. The heat absorbed by the heat absorbing member 103 is transmitted to the heat radiating side insulating substrate 101 via the heat absorbing side insulating substrate 100 and the thermoelectric conversion element group 102, and the water 105 meanders along the outer surface of the heat radiating side insulating substrate 101. The heat of the substrate 101 is absorbed by flowing the water, and the water 105 is discharged from the discharge pipe 108 to the outside of the system, whereby the heat absorbing member 103 side is cooled.

As a related technique, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
04361, JP-A-5-322366, JP-A-5-343750 and the like.

[0007]

However, this conventional thermoelectric converter has a disadvantage that a sufficiently high thermoelectric conversion capability cannot be obtained yet.

The inventors of the present invention have conducted intensive studies on this drawback, and as a result, have found out that there is a problem in the method of flowing the heat transfer medium, particularly in the thermoelectric converter. That is, in the conventional thermoelectric conversion device, since the heat transfer medium simply flows in a meandering shape along the surface of the insulating substrate, the thermal conductance between the heat transfer medium and the insulating substrate is low, and therefore, sufficient thermoelectric conversion I found that I could not get the ability.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above disadvantages of the prior art and to provide a thermoelectric conversion device having a sufficiently high thermoelectric conversion capability and excellent performance.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a substrate for supporting an N-type semiconductor layer and a P-type semiconductor layer, and a substrate opposite to the semiconductor layer supporting surface of the substrate. A dispersion member provided with a large number of injection nozzles formed with injection holes for injecting the liquid heat transfer medium is opposed via a predetermined gap, and in the vicinity of the injection nozzle of the dispersion member, opposite to the semiconductor layer supporting surface of the base. An escape recess for allowing the liquid heat transfer medium injected to the side surface to escape from the opposite side surface is provided.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In a conventional thermoelectric conversion device, a liquid heat transfer medium flows along the surface of a substrate (substrate) to transfer heat between the substrate and the liquid heat transfer medium. On the other hand, in the present invention, the liquid heat transfer medium is caused to collide with the surface of the substrate, and the state in which the liquid heat transfer medium is in contact with the substrate is turbulent. Done.

Further, by forming escape recesses in the vicinity of each injection hole of the dispersing member for injecting the liquid heat transfer medium onto the substrate, the used heat transfer medium can be quickly released from the surface of the substrate. As a result, heat is efficiently transferred, and as a result, the heat exchange capacity of the entire apparatus is enhanced, and the apparatus is excellent in performance.

Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a thermoelectric converter, and FIG. 2 is a bottom view of a dispersion member used in the thermoelectric converter. As shown in FIG. 1, the thermoelectric conversion device includes a heat absorbing member 1 in contact with a side to be cooled, a heat absorbing side substrate 2, a thermoelectric conversion element group 3, a heat dissipation side substrate 4, a support frame 5, a cover member 6, , And a dispersion member 7.

The heat absorbing member 1 is, for example, in the shape of a container, and can have a number of heat absorbing fins therein if necessary, and can be provided with a fan.

The heat absorbing side substrate 2 and the heat radiating side substrate 4 are both made of a metal such as aluminum, and an electrically insulating thin film such as alumite is formed on the surface in contact with the thermoelectric conversion element group 3. In the case where an alumite insulating film is formed by an anodizing method, the sealing property with the thermoelectric conversion element group 3 is better if the insulating thin film is not sealed.

The thermoelectric conversion element group 3 includes a heat-absorbing electrode, a heat-dissipating electrode, and a large number of P-type semiconductor layers and N-type semiconductor layers disposed between the two electrodes, which are not shown but are well known. The P-type semiconductor layer and the N-type semiconductor layer are arranged structurally and thermally in parallel, but are electrically connected in series via the electrodes. This thermoelectric conversion element group 3 includes:
One stage or a plurality of stages (cascade structure) may be used.

The support frame 5 is formed of a synthetic resin, supports the heat dissipation side substrate 4, and is positioned at the lower portion of the heat absorption side substrate 2 by pins 11, and is fixed by an adhesive 12.

The cover member 6 is formed of a synthetic resin, and is provided with a water supply pipe 8 and a drain pipe 9. The water supply pipe 8 is located substantially at the center of the cover 6, and the drain pipe 9 is located near the periphery of the cover 6. , Respectively. The cover member 6 is provided with a peripheral wall 10 opened downward, the dispersion member 7 is installed inside the peripheral wall 10, and a lower end of the peripheral wall 10 is an O-ring 14.
Is bonded to the periphery of the heat radiation side substrate 4 in a liquid-tight manner.

The dispersing member 7 is also made of synthetic resin, and has a wall 13 provided on the outer periphery, and a plurality of injection nozzles 17 having injection holes 16 projecting downward at equal intervals from the bottom surface portion 15 so as to protrude downward. An escape recess 18 is formed around the nozzle 17, and the escape recess 18 communicates with each other and has a discharge port 19.
Is connected to. The lower end of the injection nozzle 17 is the heat radiation side substrate 4
And the gap between the injection nozzle 17 and the heat radiation side substrate 4 is about 1 to 3 mm. In FIG. 2, most of the injection holes 16 and the injection nozzles 17 are omitted because the drawing is complicated.

By mounting the dispersion member 7 in the cover member 6, a flat first space 20 is formed between the cover member 6 and the dispersion member 7, and a flat first space 20 is formed between the dispersion member 7 and the radiation side substrate 4. Second spaces 21 are respectively formed.

When water 22 as a heat transfer medium is supplied from the central water supply pipe section 8, it is simultaneously spread in the first space 20, and is jetted from each jet nozzle 17 toward the plane of the heat radiation side substrate 4 in a substantially vertical direction. I do. The water 22 colliding with the heat radiation side substrate 4 and removing the heat thereof immediately shifts to the escape recess 18 side by the repulsive force of the collision and separates from the surface of the heat radiation side substrate 4, and the next new low-temperature water The operation in which the substrate 22 collides with the heat radiation side substrate 4 is continuously repeated. The heat-deprived water 22 is collected at the drain 19 through the escape recess 18,
It is discharged out of the system from the drain pipe section 9. The discharged water 22 is forcibly cooled by a radiator (not shown) and reused through a circulation system.

In the figure, reference numeral 36 denotes a reinforcing rib provided integrally with the support frame 5, 37 denotes a heat insulating layer, and 38 denotes a large thermal conductivity interposed between the heat absorbing side substrate 2 and the thermoelectric conversion element group 3. Moreover, it is a thin film having elasticity.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show a second embodiment. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a thermoelectric converter, and FIG.
FIG. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a large number of concave and convex portions 39 are integrally formed on the surface of the heat radiation side substrate 4 and the injection nozzle 17 of the dispersing member 7 has
9. Although the concavo-convex portion 39 according to this example has a large number of individually independent concave portions, a groove-shaped concave portion may be provided, and the tip portions of the plurality of injection nozzles 17 may be inserted into one groove-shaped concave portion. . In any case, the water 22 jetted from the jet nozzle 17 collides with the concave-convex portion 39 and is crushed, effectively removing the heat of the heat-radiating substrate 4, passing through the escape concave portion 18, and removing the surface of the heat-radiating substrate 4. Move away from

As shown in FIG. 1, a thermoelectric converter (dotted line) using a heat-absorbing substrate 4 having a flat surface, and a heat-absorbing substrate 4 having a large number of uneven portions 39 on its surface as shown in FIG. FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the flow rate of the water 22 and the thermal conductance with the thermoelectric converter (solid line).

The diameter of the injection hole 16 of both devices is 1.2 m.
m, the number of holes was 24, and the gap between the injection nozzle 17 and the heat-absorbing substrate 4 was 2 mm. Further, the thermal conductance hA was obtained by the following equation.

HA = Q / {Tj− (Tin + Tout) / 2} [W / ° C.] where Q: heat generation amount (input electric amount) Tj: substrate temperature Tin: water inlet temperature Tout: water outlet temperature As described above, in both devices, the thermal conductance is increased by increasing the flow rate of the water 22 that collides with the heat-absorbing substrate 4, but in particular, a thermoelectric conversion device using the heat-absorbing substrate 4 having a large number of uneven portions 39 on the surface (solid line) It can be seen that has higher thermal conductance and is superior in performance.

In the above embodiment, water was used as the heat transfer medium. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other liquids such as antifreeze may be used in addition to water.

In the above embodiment, the case of the electronic cooling device has been described, but the present invention is also applicable to a thermoelectric generator.

[0029]

FIG. 6 is a thermal conductance characteristic diagram. The horizontal axis indicates the flow rate (pressure loss ΔP × flow rate Gw) of water flowing through the thermoelectric converter with a fixed amount of input power to the water supply pump, and the vertical axis indicates the thermal conductance. Are taken individually. Curve A in the figure
Is a thermoelectric conversion device according to a second embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3, and a curve B is a dispersing member having no escape recess, that is, a dispersing member having only an injection hole formed on a bottom portion. The thermoelectric converters arranged close together, curves C are shown in FIGS.
5 is a characteristic curve of the conventional thermoelectric converter shown in FIG.

In the conventional thermoelectric converter, as shown in FIG. 8, since the flow path of the water 105 from the supply pipe 107 to the discharge pipe 108 is narrow and the path is meandered a plurality of times, the pressure loss of the water 105 is large. . Further, since the water 105 flows in a substantially laminar flow state in parallel with the surface of the heat-dissipating insulating substrate 101, heat transfer from the heat-dissipating insulating substrate 101 to the water 105 is not very good. The smallest conductance.

On the other hand, the curves A and B are designed so that water is supplied so as to impinge on the heat transfer surface of the radiating side substrate to remove heat from the radiating side substrate. Since the flow path length is shorter than the conventional one and the pressure loss is small, the thermal conductance is large. Among them, as in the present invention, water that collided with the heat radiation side substrate immediately escaped from the surface of the heat radiation side substrate, and a relief recess was formed near the injection hole so that the next new water collided with the heat radiation side substrate. The curve A has excellent thermal conductance characteristics.

The present invention is configured as described above.
A liquid heat transfer medium is caused to collide with the surface of the substrate,
The state in which the liquid heat transfer medium is in contact with the substrate is surely turbulent. Further, by forming escape recesses near each injection hole of the dispersing member for injecting the liquid heat transfer medium to the base, the used heat transfer medium can be released from the base surface as quickly as possible. The transfer is performed efficiently, and as a result, the heat exchange capacity of the entire apparatus is enhanced, and the apparatus is excellent in performance.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a thermoelectric conversion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of a dispersion member used in the thermoelectric conversion device.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a thermoelectric conversion device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a heat radiation side substrate used in the thermoelectric conversion device.

FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between a flow rate of water and a thermal conductance of the thermoelectric conversion devices according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a thermal conductance characteristic diagram of each thermoelectric converter.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of a conventional thermoelectric converter.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on line XX of FIG. 7;

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 heat absorbing member 2 heat absorbing side substrate 3 thermoelectric conversion element group 4 heat radiating side substrate 5 support frame 6 cover member 7 dispersing member 8 water supply pipe section 9 drain pipe section 15 bottom section 16 injection hole 17 injection nozzle 18 escape recess 20 first Space 21 second space 22 water

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kazuya Sato 3-36-83 Kashiwagi-cho, Noboribetsu-shi, Hokkaido

Claims (2)

[Claims] An injection nozzle having a base for supporting an N-type semiconductor layer and a P-type semiconductor layer, and an injection hole for spraying a liquid heat transfer medium to a surface of the base opposite to the semiconductor layer supporting surface. A large number of dispersing members are opposed to each other with a predetermined gap therebetween, and a liquid heat transfer medium ejected on the surface of the substrate opposite to the semiconductor layer supporting surface is provided near the ejection nozzle of the dispersing member. A thermoelectric conversion device comprising an escape recess for escape from a surface. 2. The thermoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, wherein a large number of irregularities are formed on a surface of the base opposite to the semiconductor layer supporting surface.