The Shipboard Electronics Thermoacoustic Cooler

The Shipboard Electonics ThermoAcoustic Cooler (SETAC) was built at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA. In 1995 SETAC was used to cool radar electronics during a demonstration aboard the USS Deyo. During this sea trial SETAC provided 419 W of useful cooling power with an acoustic power input of 227 W, at a cold temperature of 21 °C and a stack temperature difference of 30 °C.

Extended performance measurements at lower cold-side temperatures and varying cooling powers have recently been performed at Penn State. Data will be presented in June 1998 at the 135th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America in Seattle, WA.

(a)The SETAC Refrigerator

(b) Heat Exchanger

(c) Driver Unit

(d) Stack