Sustainable Cold Research Articles

Designing Sustainable Cold Chains for Long-Range Food Distribution: Energy-Effective Corridors on the Silk Road Belt

Modern food production-distribution processes represent a critical stressor for the environment and for natural ecosystems. The rising flows of food across growing and consumption areas couple with the higher expectations of consumers for the quality of products and compel the intensive use of refrigerated rooms and transport means throughout the food supply chain. In order to aid the design of sustainable cold chains that incorporate such aspects, this paper proposes a mixed integer linear programming model to minimize the total energy consumption associated with the cold operations experienced by perishable products. This model is intended for food traders, logistics practitioners, retail managers, and importers collaboratively called to design and plan a cost and environmentally effective supply strategy, physical channels, and infrastructures for cold chains. The proposed model is validated with a case study inspired by the distribution of two example food products, namely fresh apples and ice cream, along the New Silk Road connecting Europe and China. The illustrated analysis investigates the effect of alternative routes and transport modes on the sustainability of the cold chain. It is found that the most energy-efficient route for ice cream is via rail over a northern route and, for apples, is via a southern maritime route, and, for these two routes, the ratios of the total energy consumed to the energy content of the food are 760 and 913, respectively. By incorporating the energy lost due to the food quality decay, the model identifies the optimal route to adopt in accordance with the shelf life and the conservation temperature of each product.

Development of Sustainable Cold Spray Coatings and 3D Additive Manufacturing Components for Repair/Manufacturing Applications: A Critical Review

This review article presents the findings of a comprehensive state-of-the-art literature review of the scientific and technological progress of the cold spray process in the field of repair/remanufacturing using the concept of additive manufacturing. A thorough study was conducted on the potential of this technology to form (a) both thin and thick coatings; (b) the ability to fabricate 3D freeform components in a single process, while benefiting from reduced residual stress level compared to conventional thermal spray coatings processes such as high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) or plasma spraying. A systematic overview of the process technology, particularly focusing on the suitability of ceramic-metallic (cermet) composite particles used as feedstock in the deposition was conducted; further elaboration was made pertinent to particle impact and bonding mechanisms during the deposition.

Improving Asphalt Emulsion Mixtures Properties Containing Cementitious Filler by Adding GGBS

AbstractProduction and use of sustainable cold asphalt emulsion mixtures (CAEMs) that are comparable to traditional hot mixtures and relevant for roads and highway construction might achieve severa...

Multiphysics Based Design Study of an Atmospheric Icing Sensor

Partially funded by the Research Council of Norway, project no. 195153 and partially by the consortium of the project ColdTech - Sustainable Cold Climate Technology

Steel bridge long-term performance research technology framework and research progress

To ensure structural sustainability, it is necessary to conduct steel bridge long-term performance study, including bridge design, evaluation, maintenance, and reinforcement technology. The research on steel bridge long-term performance is introduced in four aspects: (1) fatigue performance experimental study for full-scale orthotropic steel bridge decks in laboratory to study its fatigue failure mechanism, in order to improve fatigue design methodology and find rational reinforcement and maintenance method; (2) conducting steel bridge out-of-plane distortion-induced fatigue performance study, and developing cold reinforcement method; (3) performance study for base material and typical joint under long-term vehicle and environmental effect in aging steel bridges, and safety assessment and maintenance of existing steel bridge; (4) temperature gradient monitoring for steel box girder model to build the temperature design mode. Meantime, in-situ tests and monitoring are conducted for steel bridge long-term performance detection, assessment, and maintenance. The study results in this article build the research framework of steel bridge long-term performance preliminarily, which is the basis for steel bridge sustainable design, maintenance, and cold reinforcement methodology system.

The identification of key success factors in sustainable cold chain management: Insights from the Indian food industry

Supply chain sustainability has emerged as an indispensable research agenda for the government, industry as well as non-profit orientation bodies. As a developing country, cold supply chain management in India is still in infancy. The demand pattern of food products has been dramatically changing since last few years. Nowadays, the customers are more conscious to use products for better health and highly expecting for food safety, toxic free and eco-friendly delivery of food products. However, sustainable cold supply chain has not yet received good heed throughout the world. Hence, in this paper an attempt has been made to address these important issues. A conceptual model was proposed in the consultation of practitioners and literature support to address the important issues in cold supply chain management for food companies. Therefore, in order to identify the key success factors for sustainable cold chain management, in this study a conceptual model developed. The proposed framework is then validated by an empirical research in the Indian food industry. This research has several alarming findings. Explicitly, in India i) environmental issues and social responsibility are not as important as other ‎economical supplier selection criteria, ii) among 19 food supplier selection criteria, the rank of social responsibility is 18‎, iii) low carbon emission is less important value addition trait as compare to ‎other sustainable cold chain value addition (which means in India the buyers focus more on their individual and prompt received ‎benefits rather than long ‎lasting advantages), iv) the use of life cycle analysis, renewable energy sources and passive cold chain are the least important ‎implemented sustainable cold chain practices (although this might be because of utilization complexities), v) the joint development of product is implemented at the lowest extent judging against other dynamic capacity ‎factors, vii) government usually backed the firms to adopt and implementing sustainability in their operations, but ‎training courses that will guide how to achieve sustainability are less as their requirement, and viii) business sustainability builds the trust among the government, suppliers, firm and all ‎stakeholders that build strong cold chain relationships.‎

Brown Fat Activation Mediates Cold-Induced Thermogenesis in Adult Humans in Response to a Mild Decrease in Ambient Temperature

The contribution of brown adipose tissue (BAT) to the energy balance in humans exposed to sustainable cold has not been completely established, partially because of measurement limitations of both BAT activity and energy expenditure (EE). The objective of the study was to characterize the role of BAT activation in cold-induced thermogenesis (CIT). This study was a single-blind, randomized crossover intervention. The study was conducted at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. Thirty-one healthy volunteers participated in the study. The intervention included mild cold exposure. CIT and BAT activation were the main outcomes in this study. Overnight EE measurement by whole-room indirect calorimeter at 24 °C or 19 °C was followed by 2-[18F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (PET) scan. After 36 hours, volunteers crossed over to the alternate study temperature under identical conditions. BAT activity was measured in a 3-dimensional region of interest in the upper torso by comparing the uptake at the two temperatures. Twenty-four volunteers (14 males, 10 females) had a complete data set. When compared with 24 °C, exposure at 19 °C resulted in increased EE (5.3 ± 5.9%, P < .001), indicating CIT response and mean BAT activity (10.5 ± 11.1%, P < .001). Multiple regression analysis indicated that a difference in BAT activity (P < .001), age (P = .01), and gender (P = .037) were independent contributors to individual variability of CIT. A small reduction in ambient temperature, within the range of climate-controlled buildings, is sufficient to increase human BAT activity, which correlates with individual CIT response. This study uncovers for the first time a spectrum of BAT activation among healthy adults during mild cold exposure not previously recognized by conventional PET and PET-computed tomography methods. The enhancement of cold-induced BAT stimulation may represent a novel environmental strategy in obesity treatment.

Development of Sustainable Cold Rolled Surface Course Asphalt Mixtures Using Waste Fly Ash and Silica Fume

AbstractThe reduction of hot asphalt mixtures for the usage and development of sustainable supplementary cold asphalt mixtures (CAMs) for the construction of road and highway surface layers is a major issue for researchers around the world. This reduction will benefit environmental impact, cost effectiveness, and energy savings. Furthermore, because CAMs comprise a remarkable portion of industrial waste (the disposal of which consumes virgin lands), they are attractive to road and highway authorities. The primary aim of this investigation is to develop new cold rolled asphalt (CRA) with the same gradation as hot rolled asphalt (HRA), which is usually used as a surface course in the U.K., and to improve its mechanical properties and durability by using waste and by-product materials as mineral fillers and additives. Waste fly ash (WFA) was used as a replacement for conventional mineral filler and a by-product silica fume (SF) was used as an additive to enhance the mechanical properties and durability of CR...

Factors Influencing Infant Immunization Uptake in the Yoruba Community of Southwestern Nigeria

Background: The recurrent incidence of immunizable diseases is an indication that the current immunization campaign is failing. This paper, therefore, examined the factors affecting the use of immunization and how Yoruba parents perceive immunization in the relation to beliefs and practices about child protection. Methods: A variety of qualitative methods of data collection were used to obtain information in two Yoruba communities (Moniya and Onidudu). Eight (8) Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and 10 Key Informants Interviews (KIIs) were conducted, while special cases were observed during the study using unstructured observation technique. Content analytical approach was adopted to explain the data. Results: Data showed that though there was high patronage of immunization services, some mothers still defaulted because of delay in vaccine supply, clashes of immunization days with the economic activities of mothers, especially the market days, and the negative attitude of some clinic staff members. Perceived side effect of vaccine did not have strong negative influence on the patronage of immunization. Mothers reported that delay occurred as a result of time it takes to receive immunization supplies from the central store in Ibadan and lack of assurance of getting supply at all. Conclusion: It is, therefore, concluded that attitude towards immunization uptake has improved tremendously with high demand for it over the years when data were compared with the earlier findings in the same study location a decade ago. However, this enthusiasm was still being discouraged by supply-related factors. Hence, it is recommended that sustainable cold chain system should be maintained in the local communities, using freezers powered by solar energy. Also, public engagement is necessary to address the need of the mothers. Finally, there is need to train the clinic staff in clinical ethics to be able to relate well with patients.

Life-Cycle Analysis of Roofing Insulation Levels for Cold Storage Buildings

To reduce operating costs, cold storage buildings are being designed with increasing levels of thermal roof insulation. This paper examines the current state of the art in order to estimate average roof insulation requirements in modern cold storage buildings. This research includes both economic and environmental considerations. The added environmental impact of manufacturing thermal insulation is compared to the reduced environmental impact of the building’s cooling load. The cost of purchasing and installing additional roof insulation is also compared to the annual energy savings associated with the increase to establish the most economic insulating level given today’s cost of energy. This paper shows that, from an economic, as well as from an environmental performance perspective, there is a need to design more efficient, sustainable cold storage buildings now.