Cooling load calculation during fast cooling of fresh produce.
Hobani A.I., Elansari A.M.
5th International Postharvest Symposium . Volume of Abstract . Verona, Italy 6-11 June 2004, p.69
2004
บทคัดย่อ
Cooling load calculation during fast cooling of fresh produce.
Refrigeration load capacities for fast-cooling vary significantly for the different commodities based on a number of factors.These factors include product cooling range; specific heat of the product; carton/box design; additional packaging materials used; stacking patterns during cooling and other production variables.The refrigeration capacity requirements for fast-cooling are much greater than just holding products in a typical cold storage room.Typical fast-cooling capacities may be as much as 5 or 6 times greater than the require3ments for a standard cold room design.The objective of this study was to develop a cooling load calculation model during forced air cooling as affected by the product initial and final temperatures and the cooling cycle for different types of fresh produce.The model is also to account for the fan heat load and values of specific heat for the different commodities.Based on the developed model, the cooling capacity is achieved within the time required for quality maintenance without the need for an excessively large plant.The developed model uses the seven eighth cooling time.The developed model was validated using the cooling rates values for strawberries and green beans obtained from two pre-cooling stations, which were designed and built using the current design specifications.The obtained cooling curves agreed well with those predicted by the model.