Conceptual study of a transportable cooling system based on renewable energy for use on fruits and vegetables

摘要

This article is devoted to use of refrigeration and cold chain in India, with specific emphasis onagricultural products. India is found to be vastly lacking in terms of both cold storage capacity andefficiency. Thus, there is a large potential for development. A physical design of a cooling system ismodelled (based on the Indian scenario), and a further logistical implementation of this system in Indiais constructed. A comprehensive simulation model for the complete cooling system was used to reach anoptimized system configuration, which was implemented for cooling of apples, grapes and mangoes inthe respective climatic regions of Dehradun, Mumbai and Kolkata. The cooling system was evaluated inrelation to the Indian scenario, and it is concluded that the system offers several potential benefits.