Cooling Discharging Performance of Integrated Cold Storage Box Based on Phase Change Technology

TAN Huabin; FU Yunzhun

doi:10.19554/j.cnki.1001-3563.2026.07.028

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Packaging Engineering ›› 2026, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (7) : 247-257. DOI: 10.19554/j.cnki.1001-3563.2026.07.028

Green Packaging and Circular Economy

Cooling Discharging Performance of Integrated Cold Storage Box Based on Phase Change Technology

TAN Huabin, FU Yunzhun^*

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Abstract

The "last mile" of cold chain transportation is a critical link connecting the supply chain with end consumers; however, it still faces challenges such as temperature excursions. The work aims to design a phase change cold storage box combining Stirling refrigeration and phase change technology with an applicable temperature range of 2-8 ℃ to address this issue. The temperature field characteristics and cold storage performance of the box under the influence of ambient temperature were investigated via a combination of experiments and simulations. Additionally, the influence of the phase change material (PCM) layout on the performance was analyzed. Results showed that at ambient temperature of 22 ℃, the cold storage box completed the charging process in 7 h. At an ambient temperature of 35 ℃, the effective cold holding time reached 32.1 h. Analysis of the discharging process revealed severe heat leakage at the top lid due to sealing issues, causing the top-layer PCM to melt excessively fast. To extend the effective holding time, the PCM layout was optimized. Simulation results indicated that increasing the thickness of the top PCM to 40 mm extended the effective holding time to 40.19 h, with an increase of 54.89%. At this configuration, the uniformity coefficient and cooling energy consumption were 1.48 and 1 851.7 W, respectively. In conclusion, optimizing the PCM layout effectively mitigates the impact of poor sealing on the cold storage box, extending the effective cold holding time to 40.19 h.

Key words

cold storage box / phase change material / coefficient of performance / cold discharging performance

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TAN Huabin, FU Yunzhun. Cooling Discharging Performance of Integrated Cold Storage Box Based on Phase Change Technology[J]. Packaging Engineering. 2026, 47(7): 247-257 https://doi.org/10.19554/j.cnki.1001-3563.2026.07.028

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