Strawberries have a high rate of respiration and need to be cooled quickly to preserve quality. The objectives of this paper are to a) establish the relationship between cooling rate and airflow rate, b) study the effects of new vent hole designs on cooling rates c) develop simple simulation model for the cooling of strawberries in cartons. Four different airflow rates, ranging from 1 to 6 ft³min per lb (0.001 to 0.006 m³s per kg) of fruit were used the cooling tests. Three new venthole designs having approximately the same percent opening as the standard strawberry carton were tested. Results showed that the new designs did improve cooling efficiency, especially at low airflow rates. A simulation model gave good results when compared to experimental data.

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