Abstract
WHILE in normal circumstances the barges thermally insulated with four inches of cork at present used in Great Britain for the conveyance of perishable food such as frozen meat from the importing ship to the quay or cold store are found to be adequate, conditions arise in practice under which they fail. This report will serve as a valuable guide to those who wi,-h to provide something better. It is shown that the ordinary insulated barge is only satisfactory for 48 hours if the frozen cargo is well packed, so that its rise of temperature owing to its having to coo! the barge may be as small as possible, and if the temperature of air and water do not exceed 50° F. If the barge can be pre-cooled to 20° F. it is adequate under the same temperature conditions for 96 hours. If the temper; iture of air and sea water rises above 70° F., the barge, even when pre-cooled to 20° F., will only prove effective for about 40 hours, and if it is to carry its cargo longer it must be provided with refrigerating machinery. In one experiment with a barge so equipped a cargo of frozen “meat was carried for seven days without its temperature rising more than 3° F.
Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: Food Investigation Board.
Special Report No. 15 by the Engineering Committee of the Board. Insulated and Refrigerator Barges for the Carriage of Perishable Foods. Pp. iii + 21. (London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1923.) 1s. net.
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Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: Food Investigation Board. Nature 111, 840 (1923). https://doi.org/10.1038/111840b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/111840b0