Optimization of a thermoelectric cooler-based system for dehumidification applications in terms of heat dissipation and water collection

•The effect of condensation surface on the rate of water collection is studied.•The effect of heat dissipation methods on the system’s performance is compared.•Different concentrations of MWCNT-based nanofluid coolant are analyzed.•A novel MWCNT/Polyurethane coating was developed and analyzed.•The economic aspects of using nanoparticles-based cooling methods are compared. In the stated research, a thermoelectric cooler-based dehumidification system was investigated to optimize the rate of heat dissipation and water collection. An extensive experimental and economical study was conducted to evaluate different heat dissipation methods using different concentrations of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT)/water nanofluid and a MWCNT-based nanocoating with different condensation surfaces. Three different surfaces were compared; hydrophilic finned heatsink, hydrophilic copper plate and hydrophobic Teflon plate, to select the optimal condensation surface. The hydrophobic Teflon plate showed comparable productivity to the finned heat sink, despite having 84% less surface area available for condensation. Although it has the same surface area as the hydrophilic copper plate, it gathered 45% more water. A concentration of 0.0125 wt% of MWCNT/water nanofluid achieved the lowest hot side temperature, resulting in a 10.3% improvement compared to water. While, using polyurethane coating and MWCNT/polyurethane coating on the heatsink resulted in an improvement of 6.25% and 10.625%, respectively, compared to uncoated heatsink. The systems with MWCNT-based nanofluid and MWCNT-based nanocoating resulted in a significant increase in the system’s productivity of 69.2% and 84.6%, respectively, compared to the base system without modification Lastly, the use of MWCNT-based nanocoating on the heat exchanger, with water as the working fluid, would be 16.6% more economical and offer a 3% enhancement in heat dissipation, compared to the uncoated heat exchanger with 0.0125 wt% MWCNT/water nanofluid as the working fluid.