An integrated experimental and numerical approach to understand and address airflow and cooling variation in refrigerated shipping containers with kiwifruit pallets : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Food Technology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand. EMBARGOED until 16 December 2026.
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Date
2024-11-26
DOI
Open Access Location
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Massey University
Embargoed until 16 December 2026
Embargoed until 16 December 2026
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© The Author
Abstract
New Zealand's kiwifruit industry has been the most significant contributor to the country’s horticultural export value for many years. Despite facing recent unseasonable weather conditions and labour shortage challenges, the kiwifruit industry contributed approximately 38.5 % to New Zealand's total horticultural export value in 2023. NZ kiwifruit and other horticultural produce earnings largely come from distant markets such as Europe, Japan and China, representing one of the longest supply chains in the world. NZ's expanding kiwifruit export volume heavily relies on refrigerated containers to preserve and maintain fruit quality along the supply chain. This is vital to ensure that the industry continues supplying its overseas customers with high-quality products and attracting significant export earnings. Refrigerated containers are designed to maintain cargo temperature throughout transit. However, sub-optimal airflow distribution inside containers when fully loaded with pallets of fruit often results in temperature variation within the cargo. Unfortunately, such temperature variation comes with a significant economic disadvantage as it results in fruit losses via chilling and, or freezing injury as well as senescence. It also leads to variations in the quality of fruit of the same batches, complicating inventory management along the supply chain. Improving the airflow distribution within stowed refrigerated containers can go a long way in improving temperature or cooling uniformity within the system. This project combined experimental and computational approaches to understand and improve airflow and cooling uniformity inside containers stowed with kiwifruit pallets.--Shortened abstract
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Keywords
horticulture, postharvest, kiwifruit, refrigerated transport, CFD modelling and simulation, airflow and heat transfer