ME 322a Refrigeration Systems Topic 10( Product Load)

PRODUCT LOAD
The second factor to be considered in estimating the total heat load is the product load. The term
"product" covers a wide variety of materials and substances. The nature of the product can
determine the design of the enclosure in which it will be kept chilled or frozen. For example,
there is a wide difference between freezing and storing bakery products in an insulated cabinet
and chilling water in a continuous, tubular water chiller. Even in air conditioning there is a
"product"-two, in fact, since both the dry air and the water vapor mixed with it are cooled.
In order to estimate the product load accurately, you must know several things about the product.
What kinds of foods will be kept in the cooler, and at what temperatures? Where is the product
coming from, and how is it being transported? How much of the product is to be placed in the
cooler, on average, per day or per week? From this information, you can estimate the amount of
heat that must be removed from the product. The object is to cool it from the temperature at
which it enters the cooler to the temperature at which it will be stored (and then to keep that
temperature constant).

The product load, whether it is heavy or light, is defined as any heat gain resulting from the
products that are being stored in the refrigerated space. The heat given off depends on the
specific product and its storage temperature. Product heat gain consists of some or all of:
• the heat released from products that were initially stored and/or transported at a higher
temperature than that maintained in the refrigerated space
• the heat removed in the process of freezing or chilling the products
• The heat of respiration from chemical reactions that take place in products.
Note that the values resulting from the last item vary with the storage temperature.

CALCULATING SENSIBLE HEAT

• Above-freezing temperatures
Most products are at a higher temperature than the storage temperature when they are
first placed in the refrigerated space. Many food products have a high percentage of water
content. Their reaction to a loss of heat is quite different above the freezing point than it is below
the freezing point. Above the freezing point, the water continues to exist as liquid. Below the
freezing point, it changes to ice.
The specific heat of a product is defined, as the amount of heat (kJ) required raising
the temperature of 1 k of the substance 1°C. Note that the specific heat of a product differs
depending on whether the temperature is above freezing or below freezing. The freezing point,
which in most cases is below 0°C, also varies among products. The heat to be removed from a
stored product to lower its temperature to a point above freezing can be calculated as follows:
Q1 = m x Ca x ( T1 -T 2)
where:
Q1 = the quantity of heat (kJ) to be removed
m = the mass of the product (kg)
Ca = the specific heat of the product above freezing
T1 = the initial temperature (OC)
T2 = the final temperature, at or above the freezing point (OC).

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ME 322a Refrigeration Systems Topic 10( Product Load)

• Below-freezing temperatures

Once the water content of a product has been frozen, sensible cooling occurs again,
just as it did when the product was above freezing. Now the ice in the product causes
the specific heat to change. For example, the specific heat of beef above freezing is
3.23 kJ/kg-oC. Its specific heat below freezing is 1.68 kJ/kg-oC.

The heat to be removed from a stored product to lower its temperature to a point below
freezing can be calculated as follows:

Q3 = m x Cb x ( T1 -T 3)
where:
Q = the quantity of heat (kJ) to be removed
m = the mass of the product (kg)
Cb = the specific heat of the product below freezing
T1 = the freezing temperature (OC)
T 3 = the final temperature, below the freezing point (OC).

CALCULATING THE LATENT HEAT OF FREEZING

Most refrigerated food products contain a high percentage of water. When calculating the
amount of heat that must be removed in order to freeze a product, you need to know its water
content.
The latent heat of freezing (also called the latent heat of fusion) is defined as the amount of heat
(kJ) that must be removed in order to change 1 kg of a liquid to 1 kg of solid at the same
temperature. You can find a product's latent heat of freezing by multiplying the latent heat of
water (335 kJ/kg) times the percentage of water in the product.

To calculate the amount of heat that must be removed from a product in order to freeze it, then,
simply proceed as follows:

Q2 = m x hf
where:
Q = the quantity of heat (kJ) to be removed
m= the weight of the product (kg)
hf = the product's latent heat of fusion (kJ/kg).

CALCULATING THE TOTAL PRODUCT LOAD

The total product load is the sum of the individual calculations just completed. It includes the
sensible heat above freezing, the latent heat of freezing, and the sensible heat below freezing.
The heat gain from the product is computed by the following equations:

Q = Q1 + Q2 + Q3

Example 1. 100 kg of lean beef is to be cooled from 18 to 4°C, then frozen and cooled to -18°C.
The moisture content is 69.5%, so the latent heat is estimated as 233 kJ/kg. Estimate the cooling
load. Freezing point is -2 °C, and the latent heat of fusion is 233 kJ/kg

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ME 322a Refrigeration Systems Topic 10( Product Load)

Solution:
Specific heat of beef before freezing is 3.23 kJ/(kg·K); after freezing, 1.68 kJ/(kg·K).

To cool from 18 to 4°C in a chilled room:

100 × 3.23 (18 − 4) = 4520 kJ
To cool from 4°C to freezing point in freezer:
100 × 3.23[4 − (−2)] = 1940 kJ
To freeze: 100 × 233 = 23 300 kJ

To cool from freezing to storage temperature:

100 × 1.68 [(−2) − (−18)] = 2690 kJ

Total: 4520 + 1940 + 23 300 + 2690 = 32 450 kJ

Example 2. A mass of ice at -4 oC is needed to cool 114 kg of vegetables in a bunker for 24

hours. The initial temperature of the vegetables is assumed to be 29 oC. It is also assumed that
the average temperature in the bunker is 7 oC, within 24-hour period. If the heat gained per hour
in the bunker is 30% of the heat removed to cool the vegetables from 29 oC to 7 oC, what would
be the required mass of ice?
Specific heat of ice 1.9387 kJ/kg-oC
Specific heat of vegetables 3.35 kJ/kg-oC
Specific heat of water 4.2292 kJ/kg- oC
Heat of ice 335 kJ/kg

Solution:

q1 = Ca x ( T1 -T 2) = (4.2292 kJ/kg- oC) [7 – 0]oC = 29.6 kJ/kg

q2 = hf = 335 kJ/kg
q3 = Cb x ( T2 -T3) = (1.9387 kJ/kg- C) [0 – (-4)] C = 7.8 kJ/kg
o o

___________________
Heat from Ice = 372.4 kJ/kg

QHL = Heat Load = (1.30)(114 kg)(3.35 kJ/kg- oC)(29-7) oC = 10,992 kJ

Mass of Ice = = 29.33 kg/24-hr

Example 3. Ten thousand kilograms of dressed poultry are blast frozen on hand trucks each day
(24 h) in a freezing tunnel. The poultry is precooled to 7 C before entering the freezer where it is
frozen and its temperature lowered to –20 C for storage. The hand trucks carrying the poultry
total 700 kg per day and have a specific heat of 0.47 kJ/kg.C. The specific heat of poultry above
and below freezing are 3.18kJ/kg.C and 1.55 kJ/kg.C, respectively, the latent heat is 246kJ/kg
and the freezing temperature is –2.75 C. determine the product load.

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ME 322a Refrigeration Systems Topic 10( Product Load)

Solution:

Hand Trucks:

c = 0.47 kJ/ kg.C

= cΔt= ( )(0.47 )[ (7-(-20))] =0.10kW

For Poultry:

kJ/kgC

m= =0.1157

7C
-2.75C
-20C
L= 246kJ/kg

0.11573.18(7 +2.75) +246 +3.18( −2.75+ 20) =38.4 kW

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