The MCX462+T is a fully assembled air-cooled thermoelectric (Peltier) solution designed to manage thermal loads of up to 100 Watts. The product is intended for applications where liquid cooling is not an option. A somewhat over simplified explanation of what a Peltier does is once the unit is supplied with current, one side of the unit gets ice cold while the opposite side gets really hot. A peltier unit does not have to be used with a water-block, but you do need to ensure that a high quality heatsink/fan unit is being used to disperse the heat that it produces. Feature highlights: 226 Watts Thermoelectric module Cooling capacity: up to 100 Watts to ambient with 80CFM fan. Hybrid copper base, thin aluminum pin heatsink: thanks to it's massive 1/2" thick copper base, the MCX462+? is the first commercial air-cooled heatsink on the market capable of absorbing, and dissipating the combined thermal load produced by a thermoelectric module of this class, and the latest generations of micro-processor. Patented Helicoid pin design: pins are individually machined in an helicoid shape, to increase their surface area, and further enhance heat dissipation efficiency. Exceptional quality and attention to details: the heatsink base is lapped to 0.0003" (3/10 of 1/1000"), and polished to near-mirror finish to promote optimum thermal conductivity. The 1/2" thick cold plate is also fully insulated to eliminate condensation. Source: SwiftTech