Numerical modelling of temperature fluctuations of chilled and superchilled cod fillets packaged in expanded polystyrene boxes stored on pallets under dynamic temperature conditions

Temperature variations in cod fillets packaged in four levels of EPS boxes stored on pallets under thermal load were studied numerically and experimentally. In the experiment the fillet temperature along with environmental temperature were monitored at 39 positions on the pallets during 9-h dynamic temperature storage between 7 and 23 °C. A three-dimensional time-dependent heat transfer model was developed using the ANSYS FLUENT Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software. The overall mean absolute error of the model was 0.3 °C and the maximum error obtained at a single position over the whole period was 2.4 °C. The model was further developed in order to simulate temperature evolution inside a fully loaded, 12-level pallet under the same dynamic temperature conditions as a four-level pallet studied before. The mean temperature after 9-h thermal load was 1.0 °C lower in the 12-level pallet but the maximum temperature evolution was similar in both pallets. Finally, the model was used to investigate the temperature-maintaining effect of superchilling fish before the thermal load.