Effect of Shelf Aperture Ratio on the Temperature Distribution of an Open Refrigerated Display Cabinet

Abstract

(1) Background: With the development of cold chain logistics in recent years, the demand for refrigerated display cases has greatly increased in the home and commercial markets. However, the difference of temperature and humidity between each layer of refrigerated display cabinet is great, which affects the health of consumers. In order to reduce the temperature difference for each layer in a cabinet and to improve the temperature uniformity inside the cabinet, an open-hole shelf is designed according to the principle of aerodynamics. (2) Methods: The influence of different shelf aperture ratios on the periodic temperature fluctuation, average temperature, temperature non-uniformity coefficient, and temperature maintenance coefficient inside the cabinet is studied by means of experiments with pork. (3) Results: The results show that when the aperture ratio increases from 0% to 90%, the average maximum temperature in a single cycle in the cabinet shows a trend of first decreasing and then increasing. The minimum temperature difference in the cabinet is 4.3 °C, and the corresponding aperture ratio is 25%. (4) Conclusions: The results show that 25% is the optimal aperture ratio for a shelf in the refrigerated display cabinet. The results provide a better reference for optimization of the structure and temperature in an open refrigerated display cabinet.