Application of Frost Prevention in Food Processing Equipment

Advanced Thermal and Environmental Concepts, Inc. proposes to utilize electrohydrodynamic (EHD) technology to reduce the amount of frost that forms on cold plates in food freezers. The defrost cycle consumes about 5-15% of the energy to operate an industrial food freezer. During Phase I of our project, we used EHD technology to reduce frost mass by 35% and frost height by as mush as 65% under certain conditions. In order to reduce frost formation with EHD technology to an even greater extent, we will optimize further the EHD electrode design and configuration and applied voltage waveforms. Our proposal includes a plan for an on-line measurement system to provide reliable data in an accelerated manner. We will conduct several long-term tests in order to select among the most promising electrode configurations and the performance of this selected electrode will then be more fully quantified and evaluated. Finally, a prototype frost-free freezer, installed with the selected electrode, will be designed, fabricated and tested. Approximately 24 months are required to complete Phase II.