Photovoltaic cell on top receives light. Powers small Peltier and tiny fan which emits heat through slots upward.
On bottom side you get cold.
Cover your roof and walls with these inefficient "air conditioners" and you'll never be hot in the room.-- pashute, Aug 18 2013 Peltier flashlight http://www.cbc.ca/n...ann-makosinski.html [rcarty, Aug 18 2013] Link shows flashlight powered by peltier tiles. The temperature differential between hand on outside and cool air inside hollow flashlight generated small voltage that was then fed through step up transformer. Ultimately this could be practical for air conditioning if instead of a flashlight there was a fan blowing cool air down into the house and the outside of the apparatus was exposed to the suns rays.-- rcarty, Aug 18 2013 Wouldn't it be cheaper and more effective to just use your solar panels to drive you air conditioner that uses a conventional compressor?-- scad mientist, Aug 19 2013 Maybe.
Each transformation from one form of energy to another involves loss.
So, PV cells are only a few percent efficient, and Peltier coolers equally so.
The PV -> electromechanical heatpump might be a trifle better.
Best of all would be to focus solar energy directly onto the heating coil of an absorbtion heatpump; no transformations involved, so despite the poor pumping efficiency the overall thermodynamics are preferential.-- 8th of 7, Aug 19 2013 The most efficient cooling system is to move to East bloody Anglia.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 19 2013 I doubt it. Not questioning the absolute magnitude of available coolth, but the sheer effort and paininthearseitude by which it must be divided yeilds an un- most of efficiency.-- lurch, Aug 20 2013 // East bloody Anglia //
Interestingly, German PoW's in WW2 who were kept in camps around the King's Lynn area to provide agricultural workers were frequently heard to speak in terms of wistful longing about "Good old Stalingrad" …-- 8th of 7, Aug 20 2013 Was going to travel to the Hermon mountain for the summer. Its cool there all year round. But then Kerry said it would be a good idea to give it over to Assad for 'peace' with Syria. But that was so long ago. More than a year. No, wait...-- pashute, Aug 21 2013 Scad, no, because you can't connect PV cells to an air conditioner without a. Solar panel infrastructure, b. Permits from electric co. c. Inverter.
Cost will go down with usage in cars and buildings (especially army facilities that spend tons of money on air conditioning in desert)-- pashute, Aug 21 2013 Nailed or screwed or glued onto the roof walls ? Individual thermostats or some type network or group control ? Wash off with hose to clear dirt and dust from the tiny fans?
Maybe work up a version to go on an ice chest first to prove concept and capabilities.-- popbottle, Aug 22 2013 random, halfbakery