is this power supply suitable?

Found a good deal on a PSU with the following specs:
Output 0-18V @ 9A

This would be for the following TEC:

24.6 VMAX and 11.3 IMAX?

Would this PSU suffice?


Thank you.

_Siph

And I also found a AT PSU...is combining the 12v & 5 v rails plausible?

wow.. that's one big *** pelt. about 280 watts

at 18 volts the pelt should draw roughly 8.3 amps. The supply should be able to handls this, but no gaurentees on that. The supply could probably use some better cooling if you are going to be running at that load all the time too, installing some fans into it would be a good idea.

Running the pelt at that voltage will make it only about 150 watts, so don't expect amazing temps on a late model cpu.

It is not possable to combine the 12V and 5V rails on one psu to give you 17V, but it is possable to combine any 2 rails from 2 different psu's. This might be a good way to make yourself a 24 volt powersupply. Just use 2 powersupplies that can handle about 15 amps on the 12V line. To connect them in series, you have to mod one of the supplies so that it is not grounded to anything. This means disconnecting any electrical connection between the internal circuit board and the metal case, and possabley also disconnecting the ground wire from the AC plug. You then "ground" the ungrounded supply to the +12 Volt line from the other supply. You then connect your pelt to the ground from the unmodded supply, and to the 12V line from the modded supply, which is actually at 24V above ground. There are guides around explaining how to do this a little better, but you get the idea.

Those specs match the 172W 24V 40X40mm peltier that I'm using .

The Maximum Ampage rating is just that, a "maximum" draw rating, so although your estimate is perfect Mat, it isn't a 280W peltier . At 24V this peltier draws about 7.2A.

18V would be perfect for this peltier, as at maximum voltage diminishing returns start to kick in; as heat production increases it begins to outweigh the extra boost in capability that last 2-4V (~10%) gives you. I'm running mine on 22V, and it's working very nicely.

If you would like, I'll test out my setup, with the same peltier, at 18V for you, and see if there is a signifigant difference in performance compared to 22-24V.

If that variable PSU is inexpensive, I would grab it. A variable output PSU is a very useful thing to have, and you could even conceivably cool the PSU with a 24V fan or two, and run them off of the PSU itself for a really clean setup.

damn.....too bad that thing doesn't draw 11.3 amps at 24 volts.... that would be one frosty CPU.

do u need a psu for a pelt?...couldn't u just wire it to plug into an outlet?

thx for the help felinusz & matttheniceguy.

hey felinusz. if it is not too much trouble Id be curious to see your results of performance at the lower voltage.

I was going to pick up that variable PSU for about $75 which seemed like a fair price...not great..but not bad.

_Siph

Panda, Pelts run on DC, usually either 12V or 24V, but any voltage lower than their max will work. Wall outlets are all AC, and most are either 120V or 240V. If you put AC into a pelt one side won't get cold. The whole thing will just get hot.