Abstract:
Food freezing processes are largely studied because of their importance in achieving food safety. In plate freezers, the
cold surfaces in contact with the product are stainless steel or aluminum hollow plates through which circulates the
refrigerant. The rate of the freezing process is critical to the product’s quality and to the productivity of the process and
therefore the freezing dynamics is of extreme importance. Another application may be the production of ice blocks
required for products refrigeration in places where no refrigeration facilities are available. The aim of the paper is to
study theoretically the process of ice buildup in the space between the parallel plates of a plate freezer. This study is
performed using implicit finite difference schemes. The method involves the use of variable step networks attached to
the liquid and solid domains. The evolutions of the freezing rate and of the solid layer thickness are determined for
different geometry ratios and cooling temperatures
