ISHS Acta Horticulturae 157: Postharvest Handling of Vegetables
STRUCTURE AND INSTRUMENTATION ASPECTS OF STORAGE SYSTEMS |
| Authors: | G.S.V. Raghavan, Y. Gariepy |
| Abstract:
The quality of fruits and vegetables, and consequently their storage life, are reduced by the loss of moisture, decay and physiological breakdown. These deteriorations are directly related to storage temperature, relative humidity, air circulation and gas composition. In an attempt to attain the desired storage condition in an enclosure, many systems have evolved over the years depending on the geographic location, volume produced, consumer demand and the marketing strategies. Many strides have been made by researchers in an attempt to obtain various storage systems over the years: Conventional refrigerated room, ventilated cold room, bulk storage facilities, Filacell system, Jacketed storage and various types of controlled atmosphere (CA) storage systems like Marcellin and Atmolysair. Through extensive literature search, personal enquiries, experimentation and survey, storage parameters related to structural aspects will be analyzed to point out the advantages, disadvantages and future needs of conservation techniques. In this discussion, attempts will also be made to integrate the application of irradiation technique into storage systems. Instrumentation is required to monitor parameters such as temperature, pressure, relative humidity, gas composition, mass loss, product quality, etc. The techniques used and the need for them will be discussed. Recent trends favour the use of silicon chips to make control systems easier to operate and more reliable than ever before. This should lead to better storage systems and minimize storage loss. | |
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