Controlled atmosphere
Controlled atmosphere
Controlled Atmosphere cold rooms, hereinafter called AC, allow a longer storage of food. The Controlled Atmosphere is a process of subtraction of the oxygen present in the air inside the cold room, carried out by controlling the percentage of gas present, the temperature and the humidity. The Controlled Atmosphere is the most advanced process, used to precisely control the composition of the atmosphere in the air through machinery, which allows the reduction of O2 in the cell (present in the atmosphere in a percentage of 20%). The main products that undergo this process are; apples, pears, kiwis, peaches, plums, blueberries, strawberries, tomatoes, mangoes, avocados, pineapples, bananas, citrus fruits. To create an AC cold room, it is necessary to create an environment that avoids gas exchange with the outside, providing adequate preparation of the floor, resining the joints of the refrigeration panels, installing an AC door, siphoning the system. refrigerator, gas tightness of all passages and the final cell test test. Insulated panels for AC cold rooms For the production of AC cells, the panels normally used for common cold rooms are used, with male-female dry joint or with joint to be foamed on site (which have a better seal than the joint at dry), but with some tricks. To ensure gas tightness, the joints of the panels are sealed, including the corner joints between the walls and the floor, by applying strips of glass fabric impregnated with a specific resin. The glass fabric used to seal the joints must have a weight of at least 40 g / m2 or greater and the following minimum dimensions: Wall joints: width 20 cm Corner joints of the walls and ceiling: width 40 cm Panel and floor joints : width 40 cm After the resin drying of the joints, if the internal walls of the panels are not painted, one or two resin applications are carried out on the whole surface. If, on the other hand, the walls are painted, it is not necessary to apply the resin, but if you want to further improve the seal, just one application is sufficient. Since the floor of the cold room is permeable to gases, resin is applied over the entire surface. AC doors Special cold storage doors are installed in the AC cold rooms which have the task of ensuring the seal and preventing the entry of external air, which would change the composition of the air inside it. During the retention period, these doors remain closed and are only opened at the end of the period, which can last several months. The doors are thermally insulated and are made in such a way as to ensure a perfect seal, by means of special rubber gaskets applied on the door or on the frame. They are also equipped with a manhole door generally in double glazing, for product inspection without having to open the door and a closing system, to prevent opening by unauthorized personnel.
