Investigation and Performance Analysis of Clay Pot Refrigerator on Shelf Life of Farm Produce

Abstract

This dissertation develops a methodology for the performance evaluation and parametric newlineinvestigation of a clay pot refrigerator as well as its effect on the shelf life newlineof farm produce (tomatoes, potatoes, and spinach in particular). A clay pot refrigerator newline(that uses a direct evaporative cooling technique) offers a cool atmosphere newlinewithout the need for energy (i.e. a lower carbon footprint than other food storage newlinemethods and less of an adverse effect on the environment). Initially, steady-state newlinethermal analysis of the clay pot refrigerator is performed for different seasons (summer, newlinewinter, and Rain) which shows the mass of water percolating into the walls of newlinethe clay pot refrigerator at thermal equilibrium. The goal is to understand the minimum newlineno-load temperature inside the Upper Compartment (UC), Lower Compartment newline(LC), and various walls of the clay pot refrigerator. The steady-state thermal newlineanalysis considered convective and radiative heat transfer in the system, boundary newlineconditions, and material properties. The steady-state thermal analysis results newlinedemonstrate that superior cooling performance without farm produce is achieved in newlinethe summer (as compared to winter and rainy seasons). The performance of the clay newlinepot is then investigated for stored farm produce with and without a jute bag. Tomatoes newlinekept in a clay pot without the jute bag have a shelf life of 4 days, while those newlinekept in a clay pot with the jute bag have a shelf life of 5 days. The increased inner newlinerelative humidity of the clay pot with the jute bag as compared to the inner relative newlinehumidity of the clay pot without the jute bag adds freshness to the tomatoes and newlineincreases shelf life. During the winter, the lower temperature achieved by the clay newlinepot refrigerator helps to preserve the freshness of farm produce by slowing down the newlinedecaying process. However, the humid air during the rainy season makes it difficult newlinefor clay pot refrigerators to store farm produce, leading to humidity issues. Next, the newlinedata on weight, color, stiffness, and temperature are