Quick-freezing treatment can extend the storage period of the goods and ensure that the quality of the goods in the storage period remains unchanged to meet people’s needs better.
While refrigeration using cold storage, refrigerated containers or refrigerators can also extend the storage life of items, quick-frozen items are stored in better quality and have longer storage cycles. The following CIMC Yangzhou Base introduces the design ideas of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage.
The essential requirement of quick-freezing treatment is a uniform, consistent and rapid refrigeration process to ensure that the internal and external tissues of the items after freezing are consistent and the ice crystals of each organization are independent of each other, to avoid the internal and external tissues of articles and internal and external tissue quality inconsistent. Modern precooling of articles is commonly referred to as quick-freezing, which refers to the whole thing frozen to ensure its appearance, taste and quality.
Quick-freezing treatment can extend the storage period of the goods and ensure that the quality of the goods in the storage period remains unchanged to meet people’s needs better.
1.Primary Conditions For Quick-Freezing
- similar items together quick-freezing, that is, items with the same organizational structure pre-refrigeration, prohibit all kinds of items mixed refrigeration to ensure the consistency of the precooling speed of articles.
- The specifications of quick-frozen items are consistent. If the specifications of quick-frozen items are different, the quick-freezing effect will be different, and the same quick-freezing time cannot be achieved in the same quick-freezing process.
- Frozen items must be fresh. Even if a metamorphic article is frozen, the probability of its metamorphic tissue breeding deterioration is still high. Under suitable conditions, the growth of bacteria will cause deterioration of other items in the same storage area.
- items must be cleaned before quick freezing, the reasons are as follows:
The presence of bacteria on the surface of uncleaned items can affect the storage cycle and quality of the item;
The tissue of unclean substances attached to the surface of the articles is not the same as the tissue of the articles, which will affect the quick-freezing quality of the articles, and thus the storage cycle and quality of the items.
2.Quick-Freezing Equipment Requirements
1.Clean the surface of items with sink cleaning or hanging rinse to meet the cleaning requirements of quick-freeze storage.
Generally speaking, fruit or block items are washed in the sink, and meat items are washed by hanging.
Due to exposure or ambient temperature, the surface temperature of the item is usually slightly higher than the internal temperature. Therefore, the water temperature of the cleaning item is required to be lower than the ambient temperature to control its surface temperature.
2.The size hole mechanism or other measuring mechanism is used to classify the items according to the size. Thus, the size difference of the classified items is smaller to meet the requirements of precooling items of the same volume level.
3.surface drying treatment of items, remove the residual water droplet or water film after cleaning items, so as not to cause surface moisture items frozen speed difference, affect the consistency of storage temperature of quick-frozen items.
4.quick-freezing equipment needs to have enough space to ensure uniform surface contact with refrigerant to meet the requirements of the quick-freezing effect of all parts of the goods.
3.IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage Design
The primary function of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage is to achieve rapid cooling of small-batch items.
Items that have been cleaned, sorted, blown dried, etc., enter IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage and achieve quick freezing through a constant low temperature inside the box.
IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage is typically a 20-foot or 40-foot Refrigerated Sea Container with chillers installed on the side plate. The chillers are generally installed on the same side to reduce the gas collision caused by cold turbulence and avoid the gas collision reducing the refrigerant transmission function.
The refrigerant transmission route is shorter, and the constant temperature refrigerant environment in the box is more conducive to the quick freezing of articles.
Typically, 20 feet IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage has two chillers and 40 feet IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage with five chillers.
The exit end can be docked directly to the cold storage door to reduce heat dissipation from IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage to ensure the quick freezing quality of items.
Suppose the IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage outlet cannot be directly docked with the cold storage door. In that case, a transition channel must be set to reduce heat dissipation and refrigerant loss and improve energy efficiency.
The quick-open door mechanism is designed to facilitate the entry and exit of items in and out of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage, making it easy to operate.
The IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage top design sling mechanism allows items to be transported in and out of the box by a sling. The bottom of the flat bottom plate, easy to transport goods in and out of the box.
Due to IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage to take lateral ventilation mode, the T-shaped bottom plate is generally transverse stitching to ensure ventilation effectiveness. Still, at this time, the splicing weld more will increase the extra workload.
If the T-shaped bottom plate adopts longitudinal splicing mode, the weld bead is more petite, but the ventilation performance will be affected. At this time, the T-shaped bottom plate needs openings to reduce the performance of ventilation Impact. Therefore, the flat base plate does not affect the ventilation performance of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage.
When using a sling mechanism or trolley to transport goods into and out of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage, in addition to the need to ensure the same quality, type, specifications, cleanliness, etc. special attention must be paid to the item spacing, that is, all items get the uniformity of refrigerant to ensure the quality of the goods frozen.
It is worth noting that the refrigerant outlet adds a guide design to ensure that the box’s contents get refrigerant consistency. In addition, strengthening the insulation design of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage can reduce refrigerant loss and save energy.
4 Concluding Remarks
IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage is a pre-refrigerated container designed by a small cold storage function, which can realize the pre-processing of refrigerated items and meet the requirements for storage of refrigerated items. The application of IQF Refrigerated Cold Storage has a clear role in ensuring the quality and quality of refrigerated goods and can meet people’s pursuit of quality of life.
