Building a 20x20 cm desktop Peltier cooler cloud chamber - Part 1
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2024
- In this video, I introduce my desktop Peltier cooler-based cloud chamber. I show you what parts I used, how I assembled them, how I drive the Peltier coolers, and what are the remaining challenges to make everything perfect.
There will be a part 2 where I fix all the leftover issues and I finalize the build, so please don't forget to subscribe and stay tuned!
I wrote a very detailed article about this topic that you can find on my website:
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I have been trying to build one of these to use for teaching to my students. Is there a way i could pay you to build one that works! I have been working on this for the last 2 months now.
Wait for my next video, where I will show everything step-by-step! In addition to the video, I will also publish a carefully written article to make it easy to replicate. You'll succeed with this if you'll follow my instructions precisely. I will upload the video in the near future.
@CuriousScientist thank you very much! I was already running 4 peltier plates and the 6line coolers. I have a voltage regulator but it seems that i do need to get a second one. I have also been running single stack tec1-12715 peltier plates. I can get it to cool down to about -18°C but only 2 plates at a time. Ill make some adjustments after your next video!
The TEC12715 generates way too much heat... use the same Peltier coolers as I use. You can find the via the link in the video description (parts & tools section on my website).
Please tell me you didn't place the fan direction against each other! Because that's what I can see with all the arrows against each other!
This is poor airflow. This will destroy your cooling. You could've had top facing left side and bottom facing right . Or simply flow the air the same direction to keep heat on the same direction.
Why would they face each other? The flow is uninterrupted from one side to another. They don't blow against each other. I know what I am doing.
Your videos are really helpful, Im very grateful. Could you please give me your thoughts on the follwoing : I'm exploring the feasibility of cooling a 2x2x3m greenhouse using peltier modules, powered by a 300W solar panel. My plan involves cooling a water tank with these modules and circulating the chilled water through a radiator, with fans to disperse the cool air. The hot side of the peltier modules would also be cooled by water. Given external temperatures can exceed 40°C, do you think it's realistic to maintain an average of 30°C inside the greenhouse using this setup? What do you recommend?
Thanks, I am glad to hear that you find my videos useful.
I think that the greenhouse, especially if it is placed outdoors would be a bit challenging to cool with 300 W electrical power. Don't forget that Peltier coolers are very inefficient, so perhaps, in the very best case, assuming that you can really get 300 W out of your panel constantly, you will get around 80-100 W cooling power. Maybe a tiny bit more, or a tiny bit less, I do not know exactly. Probably, you could estimate the insulation parameters of the greenhouse, then you can see how much heat can get in and escape. Then you can probably calculate the amount of cooling power needed to maintain a certain temperature. Probably there are calculators for this on the internet. Like calculators for AC power for a house or something. Once you get that value, you can see if you can achieve similar cooling power with Peltiers.
(greenhouse suggestion) )Get your wattage up to 600 to 800 watts and you could use mechanical cooling a 5000 btu air conditioner with a soft start kit $300 (ptc thermistors , capacitor,etc.) might work with 600 watts..........or a hard start kit $20 (capacitor and current relay ) is cheaper but maybe not as good for the compressor longevity !!!!!...........Erik
Nice work, really interesting.
I'm a science teacher and looking forword to design Cloud chamber for my students, need some technical help. would you help!
Thanks! Feel free to contact me! Teaching the next generation is a noble and important thing!
Dear sir.
would you send me any documentation that can guide me to build my students project of cloud chamber.
I'll be gratefull.
As you have said it is a noble thing to serve next generations.
Check one of my most recently published videos. Everything is explained there and on the corresponding blog article.
@CuriousScientist
I think there are basic components to build the chamber, j need only the basic componants because I'll build it from my own money so I need only the basic things to save some money.
some parts I should buy online because it is not available in Jordanian market.
Just check the components I used, and then you can see which ones are easier to replace. But be careful because certain components are critical, and if you replace them, you really have to know what you are doing, and the chamber won't work. For example, you can probably build an even better frame from wood, but if you manipulate the Peltier cooler and its system, things might not work well.
I like you videos. Can I ask why you didn't water cool it? Couldn't you save a bit of space having water blocks and 4x120 radiator screwed to a frame with half the fans but adding a pump of course. Will still be less powet consumption. Do love them tec2 pelyiers though. That last video of 1 at -32 and 45 watt is quite nice
Hi and thank you!
The answer is written in my article, so I just copy-paste what I wrote there.
"I can either go with water cooling or with air cooling using a better heatsink, preferably with heat pipes. Water cooling would be a bit too tedious because of the 4 Peltier coolers. It would involve a lot of plumbing and some expensive parts."
It would be MORE power consumption. You still need to cool down the water, so you would need to run fans mounted on the radiators (as you mentioned), PLUS, you would need to run the pumps which definitely eat more power. If I would have gone with water cooling, I would have split the cooling to two identical blocks: A pair of Peltier coolers cooled by a 40x120 mm water block, then a 240 mm wide radiator with 2x120 mm fans and then a water reservoir with built-in pump.
But we are talking about only a few 10 Watts of power consumption by the cooling system, so it does not matter from consumption perspective. It is not the consumption anyway that determined the choice. CPU coolers are less tedious to operate and they are much-much cheaper (3-4 times)!
Your correct about only small amount of power savings with the fans but it all adds up especially for something you may want to use longer term. I had a old 4670k overclocked to 4.4ghz running on 1 120mm radiator and never got over 40 celcius so cooling on such a hot item appeared to be efficient. Thank you for your reply and the work you do. Have found multiple videos to be helpful and very detailed in a good way. I've got a project coming up using audrinos, tft panels, actuators, peltiers and work and metal work, will be fun lol other project I've started is making my electeic lawn mower a self propelled mower using hover board wheels lol
I am glad that you found multiple of my videos useful. Don't forget to visit my website because most of my projects also have an accompanying blog article where you can find extra information, resources and so on.
Thank you amd will do. Was going to ask how to find your Web address but found it in about on your channel. Thanks again for your work.
The website is mentioned twice in the description of the video...
Did you test Peltier for aquarium water cooling? I.e. pump+water block on the cool side+fan on the hot side.
No, because I don't have the environment and equipment for it. However, a Peltier cooler-powered water chiller is on my to do list. It just needs a lot of funds.
@@CuriousScientist Sad to hear that. I `m wondering if it`s possible to cooldown 50L aquarium water from 30C to 25C using two 12708 modules. one module on each side of the water block. and i did not find video on your chanel where you cooldown both sides of small water block.
You can calculate it based on the cooling power, the amount of water, and the temperature difference you want to achieve. But keep in mind that those Peltier coolers have to be cooler very well.
Great video. I am trying to re-create your experiment, but at a lower temperature for a project of mine.
I was wondering if I need a power meter like yours or I can simply connect the buck converter directly to the peltier device ?
I did an experiment , and the LED of my buck converter shuts off, maybe from the peltier producing a current.
Thanks! The power meter is not at all necessary, but it is super helpful. You can not just run the Peltier coolers at whatever voltages, so it is good to see what the voltage level and the current are. I can not really tell the reason why your converter shuts down. I don't know any details about your power supply, your converter, and your Peltier cooler...
@@CuriousScientist I have a DC Power Supply Variable 30V 5A, 110V connected to a DROK DC-DC adjustable buck voltage converter stabilizer 6-32V to 1.25V-32V LCD display ( I think you would like this converter , it can regulate voltage and current) which is connected to a TEC-12706.
Eventually , I will use a 24V 10A DC power supply to power 4 TEC12706. I want to use a buck converter in a similar set up as yours to have a specific voltage and temperature since I only need a temperature of 9C on the cold side of the TEC.
Maybe there is a problem with my buck converter, I will try with another one soon. I was just wondering if connecting a buck converter directly to a TEC module makes sense or not since the TEC module resistance is variable and can generate electricity back into the buck converter when heat is applied on the cold side
My SZBK07 converter can also adjust current and voltage just fine. I even made modifications to it so I can have a very precise microcontroller-based temperature control for Peltier coolers. You can find the video about it on my channel.
Probably you hit the 5 A limit of the power supply while adjusting the voltage and the converter shuts down. It is just a _buck_ converter and not a _boost_ converter, so despite the fact that you have 150 W available from the PSU, you are limited by the available current provided by the PSU. Either you switch to that 24 V 10 A power supply, or you ditch the current buck converter and get a buck-boost converter.
The voltage and current generated by the Peltier cooler is so little that you probably don't need to worry about it. I always leave my Peltier coolers connected after I turn off the power but still have temperature gradient across the device and my power supplies are still intact.
@@CuriousScientist Thx again for the reply ! I actually found the problem , it was with the backflow. I installed a diode on the positive side ( did not fix the problem on the negative side ) and it works. I can read the current and voltage. I will probably buy a buck converter with anti- bacflow next time.
It's great to hear that you solved the issue with the diode!
I've been digging around trying to find a Peltier cooler cloud chamber in this 4x4 configuration, to see that you're getting -26 is awesome to see. I'm going to follow your guide on this build, thanks so much for sharing.
Yes, I think I figured out a pretty good construction. I will soon make the video of the final build and hopefully show amazing results. Stay tuned!
Amazing video, i cant wait to see more!
Thanks! More will come soon!