Peltice Diagram

 Heat Dissipation (Liquid Cooling)

The Heat Dissipation focuses on removing the heat generated in the system. Peltier Modules give off heat through two ways simultaneously: absorbing heat from the product and the operation of the module itself. Without proper cooling, this “hot” side of the of the device can reach temperatures over 100 ℃ (212 ℉). With temperatures as high as this, a simple non-active heatsink will not be effective for cooling. It was decided that a liquid cooling system would be best as water absorbs heat better than air. Liquid cooling is used in high powered computers and mainly attached to CPUs to help keep them cool during high computer processing.  By increasing the efficiency of the liquid cooling system through the absorption of heat dissipated from the Peltier modules, the modules cooling potential will improve. The heat dissipation can be completely relocated from the device compared to heat sinks since they have to be right in the vicinity of the devices. The liquid cooling system involves a water reservoir, a water pump, two radiators, and two water blocks.  The water blocks are attached to the hot side of the devices, and the heat is then circulated throughout the system.

Product Cooling (Cooling Loop)

The Product Cooling focuses on circulating water in a loop attached through the heat absorption side, or “cold” side, of the Peltier modules. This loop contains not only the Peltier modules but a large reservoir with a water pump, aluminum water blocks, and a stainless steel tube in-line. This part of the system heavily focuses on consumer health because only certain metals and tubing can be used for long-term human consumption. Stainless Steel is Food Grade and does not break down in food or drink applications. Because of this, a stainless steel tube is inserted in the juice in the cooler to absorb the heat from it using thermodynamics. Heat always escapes to cooler temperatures so the goal is to cool down the water circulating through the stainless steel tube so it can absorb the heat from the juice. This action was inspired by a wort chiller that is used to quickly chill beer in the brewing process.

Dispensing

Polyethylene Tubing is used because of its Food Grade, non-toxic, tasteless, economical, and chemically resistant. Peristaltic pumps are used to pump the liquid from with inside the cooler for dispensing. Regular water pumps cannot be used as they are not made for thick solutions and non-neutral liquids. A Proximity Sensor is used to detect when a user places a cup next to Peltice for touchless dispensing. Once a cup reaches a certain range depicted by the code (at least 1 centimeter), the code will switch into the dispensing portion of the code and dispense juice until the user removes the cup. The flow rate of the dispensing is not too quick nor too slow. The peristaltic pumps at an average rate of 400 ml/min. A typical red Solo can hold up to 473 ml of fluid so it would take approximately one minute to fill a cup for drinking.

Control System

The Control System focuses on many sensors in making sure the device protects it from failure, for automated dispensing, and provide information to the user through the LCD display. This incorporates an Arduino, Temperature Sensors, Light Proximity Sensors, a liquid detecting sensor, Relays, an LCD display.