LG Innotek on Wednesday announced it had successfully carried out mass production of a thermoelectric module, a cutting-edge component that provides both cooling and heating functions.

As the component is small and light, it can help improve the design and convenience of products such as home appliances and automobiles that need both cooling and heating functions, the company said in a press release.

A thermoelectric module is an electronic cooling and heating component that controls temperature by supplying electricity to a semiconductor element. It uses the “peltier effect,” which refers to when electricity flows through metals of different properties to result in one side being heated and the other side being cooled. 

The module is a half-finished product in which a heat sink and cooling fan are mounted on a thin thermoelectric device of 4 millimeter thickness. The module’s temperature control range extends from minus 50 degrees Celsius to 80 degrees Celsius without refrigerant compressors or hot wires, the company said.

The thermoelectric module can also be applied to vehicles by being installed in car seats, headlight dehumidifiers and battery cooling devices, among other parts.

The company added the modules are also environmentally friendly, as they do not use Freon gas, which degrades the ozone layer.

With the development of a high-efficiency thermoelectric device, the module’s heating and cooling rate increased by 20 percent and power consumption decreased by 25 percent.

The company has begun mass production of the small thermoelectric modules for heating and cooling, and plans to expand its applications to high-end refrigerators and automobiles in the future. According to a market researcher, Transparency Market Research, the global thermoelectric module market is expected to grow from $441.7million in 2016 to $642.3 million in 2020.

LG Innotek is a cutting-edge materials and components manufacturer and an affiliate of LG group. The company’s business units include core components for light-emitting diodes, mobile devices, automobiles, displays, semiconductors and the Internet of Things technology. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)