<![CDATA[Portable cooling systems powered by renewable energy are of interest for outdoor applications where conventional refrigeration is inconvenient. This study experimentally assesses the practical cooling performance of a portable solar-powered thermoelectric cooler based on cooling time and sustained cooling duration. The prototype has external dimensions of 400 mm × 400 mm × 350 mm and was designed for a nominal temperature range of 10–20 °C using a 100 W solar energy source. Cooling performance was evaluated using food and beverage loads and compared with a common cooler box. Three recorded trials were used for each load category. The portable solar cooler required an average of 85 min to cool the food samples and 34 min for drinks, whereas the common cooler required 60 min and 25 min, respectively. Although the prototype exhibited a slower pull-down time, its cooling duration was approximately 8 h compared with 3 h for the common cooler box. The results, therefore, indicate a trade-off between initial cooling rate and sustained temperature holding. The study contributes an experimentally based performance assessment of a low-cost solar-assisted thermoelectric cooling configuration and identifies thermal insulation, heat rejection and enclosure sealing as key areas for further improvement.]]>
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