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CHAPTER 26

MARINE REFRIGERATION
Refrigeration Load................................................................... 26.1 Ship Refrigerated Room Design............................................... 26.6
Refrigeration System................................................................ 26.1 Specific Vessels ........................................................................ 26.6
Cargo Holds............................................................................. 26.2 FISHING VESSELS.................................................................. 26.7
SHIPS’ REFRIGERATED Refrigeration System Design.................................................... 26.7
STORES................................................................................ 26.4 Refrigeration with Ice............................................................... 26.7
Commodities ............................................................................ 26.5 Refrigeration with Seawater..................................................... 26.8
Storage Areas........................................................................... 26.5 Process Freezing and Cold Storage......................................... 26.8

M ARINE refrigeration systems are used aboard seagoing ves-

sels and offshore facilities and generally include cargo hold
refrigeration, domestic refrigeration services, and refrigerated con-
Compressors
Generally, all of the same types of compressors used in stationary
refrigeration plants can also be applied on ships. Chapter 37 of the
tainers. These systems differ from stationary systems not only in 2008 ASHRAE Handbook—HVAC Systems and Equipment describes
physical aspects but also in the fact that marine systems must be compressors in detail and discusses their application and control.
designed to handle frequent starting and stopping. Process freezing Intermittent operation of compressors should be minimized to
or chilling plants on vessels might run continuously for weeks, but ease the starting load burden on the vessel’s electrical generating
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

under some conditions may be started and stopped daily. Cold stor- plant. Automatic capacity control should be used to react to varying
ages are usually shut down after the cargo is discharged, and are loads. Oversized compressors should be avoided.
restarted before new cargo is loaded. The shafts of rotating equipment are usually oriented fore and aft
Personnel changes of engineers and refrigeration crew members to minimize the gyroscopic bearing loads that occur when a vessel
require that those unfamiliar with the installation be able, on short rolls. Compressor lubrication systems must be able to function
notice, to trace well-labeled systems and place the plant in opera- under all conditions of pitch, roll, trim, and list.
tion or maintain it without undue hazards to machinery, cargo, or Reserve capacity and spare parts must be taken into account in
personnel. the design. There must be redundancy built into the system, a com-
Plant layout aboard ships should be as simple as possible without plement of spare parts to ensure the ability to maintain temperature,
sacrificing reliability. The machinery plant should be close to the or some combination of the two. ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 26 lists
main power plant to provide short piping and power connections spare parts and tools to be provided on board. Table 1 suggests re-
and facilitate close supervision by operating personnel. Machinery serve capacities for various installations.
space should be uncrowded, even at the expense of revenue space, to
give ample room for operation, maintenance, and repair of both the Condensers and Coolers
apparatus and the ship’s structure. Shipboard condensers are most often of shell-and-tube design,
All machinery must have sturdy foundations, and all components using seawater as the condensing medium. Other types of condens-
should be secured against vibration from either themselves or other ers, such as plate-and-frame and double pipe, are sometimes used.
machinery. High-speed machinery should be mounted fore and aft, Surfaces exposed to seawater must be resistant to corrosion. Cupro-
and all feeds, drains, and vessels must be installed with full consid- nickel is the most common tube and tube sheet material for refrig-
eration of the effects of pitch, roll, trim, and list. erants other than ammonia. During selection of equipment,
Refrigeration equipment should not, in general, be kept in the installation, and operation, special consideration must be given to
same enclosed space as internal combustion engines, because preventing damage from galvanic corrosion, erosion, electrolysis,
engine damage can occur in the event of a refrigerant leak. Locating and anaerobic corrosion. Epoxy coatings and sacrificial anodes are
refrigeration equipment close to the main engine space usually often used as preventive measures.
improves economy of space and provides easy connection to power Considerations for brine (including seawater) coolers and water-
and cooling. cooled oil coolers or subcoolers are similar to those for condensers.
Materials of construction must be compatible with the medium
REFRIGERATION LOAD being cooled or being used for cooling.
This chapter does not discuss load calculations in detail, because Shell-and-tube condensers are normally fitted with dual drains in
the loads that might be encountered in a marine refrigeration plant order to drain freely under all conditions of pitch, roll, trim, or list.
vary so widely. However, the methods used to calculate them can be As an alternative, they may be installed on an angle great enough to
found in Chapter 24, and load calculation considerations are dis- compensate for the maximum angle of vessel trim or list that may be
cussed in this chapter in the section on Specific Vessels. encountered.

REFRIGERATION SYSTEM Table 1 Operating and Reserve Capacities of Condensing Units

Refrigerants No. of Units, Additional or Reserve Total No.
Refrigerants for shipboard use must meet the same environmen- 100% Load Unit, % of Units
tal regulations that apply to land-based systems. The choices are 1 100 2
similar, but special attention should be given to the availability of 2 50 3
refrigerants and compressor lubricants at all ports of call. 3 33 1/3 4
4 25 5
The preparation of this chapter is assigned to TC 10.6, Transport Refrigeration. 5 or more 20 6 or more

26.1
Copyright © 2010, ASHRAE
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26.2 2010 ASHRAE Handbook—Refrigeration (SI)

Receivers and Refrigerant Distribution electronic media storage, or some combination of the two. The
Receivers, either vertical or horizontal, must be installed so as to shipper or buyer of the product or cargo often specifies the type of
retain a liquid seal at their outlet under all conditions of pitch, roll, recording device.
trim, or list. They should be fitted with an impact-resistant level Electronic thermometers and thermostats have come into wide
glass, and may be additionally fitted with electronic level indication. use. They allow for long distances between the sensor and the con-
All of the same methods of refrigerant distribution that are used troller or display, are very precise, can often be tied in with micro-
in stationary refrigeration plants are also used in shipboard refriger- processor system controls and data logging systems, and many can
ation, including the use of secondary refrigerants. Generally, the be calibrated in the field. In a large refrigerated space, multiple sen-
same requirements must be met, in addition to those imposed by sors can be combined to give an average reading to the display or
operating at sea. controller.
Take care to ensure proper operation at any vessel angle that may
be encountered. For direct-expansion systems, piping must ensure CARGO HOLDS
adequate oil return. Liquid-level controls used for flooded and recir-
culating systems should be located in the middle of vessels rather Arrangement
than at either end. Provisions must be taken in vessel design to min- Arrangement and dimensions are determined by the ship’s struc-
imize liquid sloshing caused by sea conditions. ture, compliance with compartmentalization of the hull as related to
System piping must be able to withstand the stresses of operation watertight integrity, vessel stability, and fire resistance. Cargo holds
at sea, including vibration, impact, and flexing of the ship’s structure. should not be designed exclusively for high-temperature service un-
less it is certain that the vessel will always remain in that limited trade.
Controls
Refrigeration controls must be located where they can be readily
Recent technological developments have significantly changed accessed by operating personnel regardless of whether holds are full
how marine refrigeration plants are controlled. Electromechanical of cargo. When controls, piping, or other equipment, such as evap-
controls, which in earlier decades supplanted manual controls, are orators, are located near hatches, adequate measures must be taken
now increasingly being supplanted with solid-state controls in new to prevent damage from impact by cargo, hatch covers, etc.
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

and existing installations. The proliferation of electronics has influ- The greater the number of subdivisions in the refrigerated com-
enced temperature and pressure controls, motor controls, level con- partments, the greater the loss to the ship’s revenue-generating
trols, data and trend logging, compressor sequencing, and leak spaces, because of the volumes occupied by insulated partitions,
detection. Microprocessors are becoming the common method of cooling apparatus, piping, and accesses. Thus, the all-refrigerated
compressor control. As solid-state technology advances, its advan- ship, with only the main structural boundaries insulated, makes the
tages become increasingly pronounced. Automatic sequencing of most efficient use of a ship’s refrigerated enclosures. This efficiency
multiple compressors has become as simple as entering parameters comes with disadvantages, such as the difficulty in providing uni-
on a keypad. Electronic temperature controls are very precise, can form temperatures throughout, and the inability to maintain differ-
easily be provided with multiple set points for varying duties, and ent cargoes at different temperatures.
can be located hundreds of metres away from the space they control.
Pressures, temperatures, amperages, flow rates, liquid levels, Space Cooling
events, and virtually any other information required can be deliv-
ered electronically to one or more central locations for monitoring Cargo is tightly packed in refrigerated holds of all types of
and control. Computer technology allows logging these data for vessels, with no aisles or clearances, presenting challenges to the
long- and short-term storage. The data can even be transmitted by designer. Cooling can be by extended-surface overhead-mounted
satellite from a vessel at sea to a shore-based facility. coils, prime surface coils, or forced air.
Electronic leak detection equipment can reduce the potential for For operation below freezing, the designer must consider
accidental exposure to dangerous levels of refrigerant vapor in con- whether defrosting will occur during operation, as with forced-air
fined spaces. handlers, or after cargo is unloaded, as with prime surface coils. The
Applications of solid-state technology are too numerous, and hold design must allow for draining defrost water from the space,
evolving too quickly, to list completely in this chapter. Changes in because it cannot usually be discharged to the outside of the space,
controls technology are probably the most significant in marine as in stationary plants.
refrigeration over the last few years. Note, though, that sophisti-
cated controls are not a substitute for sound design and construction. Insulation and Construction
Whatever control system is used, proper documentation must be Insulation. Moisture-, vapor-, and water-resistant insulation is
provided; operating instructions must provide enough detail for of particular importance aboard ship because of frequent and
users to operate the system with a minimum amount of training. extreme temperature cycles caused by intermittent refrigeration. On
termination of refrigeration at discharging ports, insulation is at
Thermometers and Thermostats lower temperatures than the open room; often, the room surfaces are
The thermometer (or thermostat display) is the principal indicator dripping wet with atmospheric moisture, which enters through the
of how a refrigeration plant is functioning. Accurate control of space/ open door or hatch. Both warm and cold sides should be moisture-
room temperature depends on proper placement of the sensor(s) in sealed equally; cold-side breather ports are not recommended.
that space. In spaces where the product is held just above freezing, Other common sources of water in ships’ cold storages are melting
placement is critical to avoid freezing the product. Sensors used with ice and defrosting cool surfaces.
forced-air evaporators in this type of application should be placed in Severe service conditions, which subject the insulation to injury
the delivery airstream, which is the point of critical temperature. or change by mechanical damage or vibration, and intermittent
Thus, if 0 to 0.5°C air is delivered, the product will be cooled as refrigeration place exacting requirements on insulation for ships’
effectively as possible without risk of freezing. In spaces where a cold storages. The ideal shipboard composite insulation should have
wider variance in temperature is tolerable, sensor placement is less the following characteristics:
critical. However, always attempt to place them in the most represen-
tative location. • High insulating value
Temperature recorders are essential to proper operation and • Imperviousness to moisture from any source
control of cargo refrigeration systems. These can be paper charts, • Light in weight
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Marine Refrigeration 26.3

• Flexibility and resilience to accommodate ships’ stresses and The U.S. Public Health Service requires all linings to be rat-
loading proofed. Vulnerable linings should have an underlay of 6 mm, 16 ga
• Good structural strength galvanized wire mesh for ratproofing.
• Resistance to infiltrating air
Applying Insulation
• Resistance to disintegration or deterioration
When applying panels with adhesives over block insulators,
• Fire resistance or fireproof self-extinguishing qualities
butted joints should be separated sufficiently for the adhesive to
• Odorlessness extrude, provide a moisture-sealed joint, and accommodate move-
• Not conducive to harboring rodents or vermin ment of the panels by flexing of the ship’s structure. Joints may be
• Reasonable installation cost covered by cargo battens, which are also secured by adhesive and
• Workability in construction with brass screws. Bulkheads of all cold storages should be fitted
with vertical cargo battens on 380 to 460 mm centers to hold cargo
In the United States, the properties of the insulation and the clear of the insulated bulkhead. This spacing allows circulation of
details of construction should meet approval by the U.S. Coast air and prevents the contacting package from as a room insulator.
Guard and U.S. Public Health Service. For information on insula- Container vessels of cellular construction move containers along
tion materials and moisture barriers, see Chapters 23 and 25 to 27 of guiding columns; the boundaries of the hold, except for the hatch
the 2009 ASHRAE Handbook—Fundamentals. coamings, are not subject to mechanical damage. Here the insula-
Construction. The three principal parts to the cold storage tion may be of the simplest, low-cost, ratproofed form without fitted
boundary are the envelope or basic structure, the insulating material, hard panels or cargo battens.
and the room lining. Urethane foam deck insulation requires a restricting surface to
The envelope is usually partly composed of the ship’s hull, confine and distribute the expanding material. In one method, ply-
watertight decks, or watertight main bulkheads with members that wood is secured over foam spacer blocks, and the material is in-
resist vapor entry from the warm side. Inboard boundaries outlin- jected into the space through properly spaced holes. The membrane
ing cold storages should have an equal ability to resist moisture. A and wearing surface covering are laid over the plywood. Wood in
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

continuous steel internal bulkhead with lap seams and welded the deck is not good practice, however, and wood is not a suitable
stiffeners provides a boundary of adequate strength and tightness. base for a heavy-duty wearing surface material. An alternative
Details of design may accommodate dimensioned insulators or method calls for laying expanded board or blocks in an approved ad-
facilitate means of fastening these materials. Doorway main bucks hesive. Using the more resilient corkboard laid in adhesives may be
of steel channel provide good structure, but are usually a source of good practice in some applications.
sweating on low-temperature rooms because of heat gain through The greatest weakness in ship cold storage construction is the
the metal. Wooden door bucks minimize sweating but counteract deck covering. Research and practice have not developed a totally
efforts to eliminate concealed wooden structure. satisfactory covering. Unlike a warehouse, a tightly packed cargo
Partitioning bulkheads may be of similar detail, but airtight cold storage must have deck gratings both to ensure air circulation
sealing is less important. Some installations are framed with angle- and to protect the bottom tier of products from heat leakage. Grat-
bar grids, between which the insulator is installed. In passenger ing supports carry the cargo weight to concentrated load areas of
vessels (over 12 passengers), Coast Guard regulations on fire- the deck. The room may be filled with warm general cargo in alter-
resistant construction restrict wood assembly. Under no circum- native service, and a thermoplastic covering may be punctured by
stances should wood be a part of the deck assembly, because it the supports.
deteriorates rapidly under the prevailing conditions. The deck covering must be flexible enough to withstand the flex-
The assembled boundary of a ship’s cold storage must withstand ing of a ship or extreme temperature fluctuations, as well as main-
heavy deck loads and several bulkhead thrusts of cargo when the tain a moistureproof cover over the insulation. The most satisfactory
vessel rolls or pitches in a heavy sea; it must also be able to flex with material is a mastic composed of emulsified asphalt, sand, and
the hull structure being stressed in any angle. The assembly must cement. This material is applied cold; on setting, it has good load-
resist vibration caused by propelling machinery, the sea, and care- bearing qualities, is impervious to water, has a small degree of duc-
less handling of cargo. The vapor seal of all surfaces must remain tility, and may be used in thinner layers than concrete. It should
intact. always be reinforced, and expansion joints should be included to
Only in extreme cases should voids in the insulation assembly accommodate shrinkage and adjustment to movements of the ship.
be concealed. Filling gaps with insulating material is cheaper and All rigid or semirigid deck coverings should have rubber-base
more effective than constructing internal framing. Exceptions to composition expansion joints capable of bonding to the edges of
this rule are in the deep volumes formed by bilge brackets, deck the deck slabs or bulkhead and not subject to shrinking from age.
brackets, and open box girders. Solid filling results in more insu- The expansion joints should trace the periphery of the room, the
lation thickness than is needed for a heat barrier in the overhead line of all underdeck girder systems, bulkhead offsets to pillars, and
and the ship’s side, where beams and frames are deep. similar lines of anticipated ship stress.
The room lining must be sturdy enough to withstand the impact Water from ice-packed vegetables and from defrosting requires
of frequent cargo loading and handling. On passenger vessels, U.S. the deck covering to be impervious to moisture in the slab as well
Coast Guard regulations require that the lining be fire-resistant. as the joints. If the deck insulation is wetted, it will deteriorate,
Tongue-and-groove lumber is considered obsolete for any ship; on lose its efficiency as an insulator, and give off odors. If wet deck
freight vessels where wood is permissible, exterior-grade plywood insulation freezes, it will lift the deck covering and destroy it. If
is sometimes applied. A few installations have been made either of water penetrates to the steel, the ship’s structure will corrode
laminated plastic sheets or wood fiber hardboard; both are satisfac- unnoticed.
tory when properly supported. Steel linings are costly, impractical, All deck coverings will crack or become damaged during the
and difficult to maintain and repair. The favored lining is the cement ship’s life. As a secondary security against water, a membrane
and fire-resistant fiber hardboard panel with aluminum sandwich should be laid between the insulator and the deck covering. The
lamination. When the insulator is secured with adhesives containing membrane need not be flashed to the bulkhead if suitable sealing
volatile solvents, the aluminum laminations should be of perforated expansion joints are fitted at the juncture of the bulkhead panel and
metal or mesh. the deck covering.
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26.4 2010 ASHRAE Handbook—Refrigeration (SI)

When an attempt is made to seal insulation with waterproof In finishing, wooden surfaces should be varnished rather than
paper, it should be applied in double thickness, and the laps and per- shellacked, because shellac has little protective penetration. Manu-
forations should be cement-sealed. Bulkhead and ceiling panels factured nonmetallic-surfaced materials may be painted or var-
attached with suitable adhesives do not require waterproof paper nished, but if they are nonhygroscopic, their original surface usually
inner linings. maintains a good appearance for longer than a painted coating.
Low-temperature apparatus or piping should be inspected care-
Decks and Doors fully during installation. All joints and surfaces should be gener-
The deck is the weakest point in the ship’s refrigerated cargo ously sealed to keep out atmospheric moisture. Special attention
hold. The weakest element in the deck is the deck drain, because of should be given to pipe covering ends, valves, and bulkhead pene-
the difficulty in bonding the deck covering with the metal drain fit- trations. On below-freezing services, special composition adhesives
ting. Water often finds its way between the covering and the insu- should be used. The smallest omission or breach of a seal allows
lation. The conventional deck drain is fitted with a perforated plate progressive destruction of the covering.
flush with the deck covering and hidden by the deck gratings. If the On ships, where piping systems are relatively short, insulation
perforations become clogged by debris, water accumulates at the functions more to prevent sweating or frosting of cold surfaces than
drain. A drain fitting near a bulkhead or corner can create a weak to prevent heat gain.
section in the deck covering and develop cracks running to the
bulkhead or across the corner. Figure 1 shows a satisfactory drain
fitting. It is flush with the top of the gratings, has a lift-out cover for
SHIPS’ REFRIGERATED STORES
easy cleaning, and is bonded to the deck covering with expansion Most vessels carry enough provisions for long voyages without
joint material. Drains between decks should be omitted wherever replenishing en route. The refrigerating equipment must operate
practical. under extreme ambient conditions. Storage of frozen foods, pack-
Refrigerated enclosure doors are generally a manufactured prod- aging, humidity, air circulation, and space requirements are impor-
uct. They should have generously designed steel hardware, and the tant factors.
door and frame should be metal-sheathed and have a flat sill and Perishable foods can be fresh, dehydrated, canned, smoked,
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

double gasket. Very large or double doors should have additional salted, and frozen. For most, refrigeration is necessary; for some, it
dogs to assure proper sealing when closed. may be omitted if the storage period is not too long. Space aboard
Sliding doors should be installed wherever possible to reduce ship is costly and limited; many rooms at different temperatures
interferences and conserve adjacent revenue space. When used, cannot be provided. Suitable product storage can be obtained by
brackets should be installed to support portable horizontal spars providing conditions outlined in Table 2 and described in the fol-
inside the doors to prevent cargo from falling against the doors in a lowing sections.
seaway. Molded glass-fiber swinging doors insulated with urethane
foams poured in place are available. They are strong and light- Table 2 Classifications for Ships’ Refrigeration Services
weight, are easily handled, and can be fitted with lightweight hard-
ware. Temp., Passenger Freight
Service °C Vessels Vessels
Freezer rooms
Fig. 1 Floor Drain Fitting Meats/poultry –29 X X
Frozen foods –29 X X
Ice cream –29 X X
Fish –29 X X
Ice –2 X
Bread –18 X
Chill rooms
Fresh fruit/vegetables 1 X X
Dairy products/eggs 0 X X
Thaw rooms 4 to 7 X X
Wine rooms 9 X
Bon voyage packages 4 X
Service boxes in main galley
Cooks’ boxes 4 X X
Butchers’ boxes 4 X
Bakers’ boxes 4 X
Salad pantry refrigerator 4 X
Coffee pantry refrigerator 4 X
Ice cream cabinet –12 X
Mess rooms or pantries 4 X X
Deck pantries 4 X
Wine stewards’ box 4 X
Bars/fountains Various X
Miscellaneous
Ice cube freezers See text X
Ice cream freezers See text X
Biologicals 4 X
Drinking water systems See text X X
Ventilated stores
Hardy root vegetables See text X X
Fig. 1 Floor Drain Fitting Flour/cereals See text X X
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Marine Refrigeration 26.5

COMMODITIES Storage Space Requirements

Space requirements for refrigerated ships’ stores can be approx-
Meats and Poultry imated by formulas. However, catering officials and supervising
Substantial savings in space and preparation labor and better stewards have specific ideas regarding the total volume and subdi-
quality can be obtained with precut, boned, frozen meat and poultry visions, and these sometimes vary greatly. A freight ship in ordinary
packed in moisture- and vaporproof cartons and wrappers. For this scheduled service seldom exceeds 45 days between replenishment
reason, increased –18°C storage space should be anticipated. Fresh of stores, and passenger vessels considerably less. In addition, de-
meats are less suitable because of their relatively short storage life. liveries en route are possible.
Also, the space required for fresh meats is two to four times more The space provided should allow suitable working floor areas for
than that needed for prepackaged meats. good storekeeping. When possible, stable piling 1.8 m high is good
practice. If the clear height of the room is less than 2.1 m, allow-
Fish, Ice Cream, and Bread ances must be made for air circulation. A storage factor of 2.8 m3/
Mg of goods should suffice and allow floor working area. If a direct-
Good-quality fish, properly prepared and packaged, remains
ing caterer or steward is not available for consultation, Equation (1)
odorless and palatable for a long time.
may be used to estimate the total refrigerated storage space for mer-
Commercially prepared ice cream is nearly always available and chant vessels. Ice storage is not included because of the various
used to a great extent for both passenger and freight vessels. Ice methods used in supplying it.
cream for immediate use should be kept at a slightly higher temper-
ature in an ice cream cabinet in the galley or pantry. If ice-cream-
NPDF
making equipment is used, provision must be made for hardening V = ----------------- (1)
the ice cream, ices, and sherbets. 1000
Excellent results can be obtained by purchasing freshly baked
where
bread, sealing it in moistureproof wrappers, and storing it at –18°C.
This supply may be supplemented by bread and other bakery items V = total volume of refrigerated storage (not including ice), m3
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

N = number of crew and passengers

made on the ship. Frozen bread may be thawed in its wrapper in a
D = number of days between re-storing
few hours. P = mass of refrigerated perishables per person per day, kg
= 4.5 kg for freighters
Fruits and Vegetables = 6.1 kg for passenger vessels
Packaged frozen fruits, fruit juices or concentrates, and vegeta- F= stowage factor (approximately 2.8 m3 per tonne of goods)
bles may be stored in any freezer room. All packaged frozen prod- 1000 = kg/Mg
ucts may be held in a common –18°C storage space. However, For example, for a freighter on a 45-day voyage with a crew of 53
improved accessibility, especially on large passenger vessels, may and 12 passengers,
justify separate refrigerated spaces for some products.
In some cases, fresh-grown product is desired. These items may 65  45  4.5  2.8
be stored in a common chill room, but some compromises with their V = --------------------------------------------- = 36.9 m3
1000
optimum storage conditions must be expected.
With 1.8 m high stowage, the net floor area is 20.5 m2. With
Dairy Products, Ice, and Drinking Water 2.4 m high ceilings, the gross volume is 49.2 m3.
All dairy products may be stored in a single room, following cus- Gross volume represents actual space available for storage of
tomary shoreside practice. Strong cheeses with odors that might be foods up to ceiling height and does not include the space occupied
adsorbed by other foods should be stored in a tightly enclosed chest by cooling units, coils, gratings, or other equipment.
or cabinet in the dairy refrigerator. Eggs may be processed by oil
dipping or heat stabilization to make them less sensitive to unfavor- Stores’ Arrangement and Location
able humidity conditions or odors. Large passenger vessels should Next to the arrangement of ships to meet their major purpose, the
be fitted with a separate egg storage room. Butter for reserve supply planning of ships’ housekeeping facilities is most important. Effi-
should come aboard frozen and be kept in a freezer. Frozen homog- cient operation by culinary workers requires not only well-arranged
enized milk has been perfected to a degree that it can be carried for working spaces, but also convenient supply stores. Storerooms are
reasonably long periods. Aseptically canned whole milk may be usually located in spaces least suitable for living quarters or revenue-
stored without benefit of refrigeration, but this product has some earning volumes and in areas adjacent to the main galley and pantry.
limitations because of the detectable cooked flavor. The arrangement should provide easy access, which generally places
Flake ice machines and automatic ice cube makers are common the reserve storage refrigerators on the deck below the galley.
on passenger and freight vessels. Chilled drinking water is piped to Aboard freight vessels, refrigerators serve for daily issue as well
many parts of a ship. The water is cooled in closed-system scuttle- as reserve storage. Aboard passenger vessels, reserve storerooms
butts, and the necessary circulating lines serve living and machinery are less frequently entered, and greater use is made of the service or
spaces where drinking fountains and carafe-filling taps are in- work boxes.
stalled. Remote stations that would require unusually long insulated
Passenger vessels carry a corps of steward’s storekeepers, who
piping runs are better served by independent refrigerated drinking
should have an issue counter and office located within sight of the
fountains.
exits serving this area. The storerooms should extend to the ship’s
sides or have passageways reaching to sideport doors through which
STORAGE AREAS stores may be loaded directly into the ship. However, the arrange-
Many borderline perishables, such as potatoes and onions, are ment of passenger ship stores will likely be compromised because
satisfactorily stored with ventilation only. Hardy root vegetables of the interferences of structure, machinery or access hatches, and
carried on freight vessels not destined for winter zones are kept in ventilation trunks.
slatted bins on a protected weather deck. Flour and cereals must be In addition to the requirements for reserve storage of perishable
stored in cool, well-ventilated spaces to minimize conditions con- foods, refrigerators (often referred to as working boxes) must be
ducive to propagation of weevils and other insects. provided for the galley and pantry crew. On cargo vessels, a large
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26.6 2010 ASHRAE Handbook—Refrigeration (SI)

domestic-type refrigerator suffices. When more space is needed, a SPECIFIC VESSELS

commercial walk-in box can be used. On passenger vessels, larger
boxes are built-in like reserve refrigerators. Capacity of the passen- Cargo Vessels
ger ship refrigerators is governed by the number of passengers car- Marine transport is an interim storage operation between pre-
ried, the variety of the menu, and the arrangement of the galley and shipment storage of indeterminate duration, and distribution at des-
pantries. tination ports. Good design requires the application of criteria that
Ice cream stored in the reserve boxes is too hard for serving; meet or even exceed those applied to shore-side cold storages.
hence, a dry or closed serving cabinet that maintains temperatures Increased use of cargo containers (see Chapter 25) has effected
from –15 to –12°C must be installed in the pantry. Passenger vessels savings by providing faster loading and unloading of vessels. Con-
may require ice-cream-making machines as well as bar and soda tainers also allow cargo to remain refrigerated during vessel loading
fountain equipment, the latter being fitted with commercial, inde- and unloading. Even with these advantages, containers will never
pendent refrigerating units. completely supplant built-in cargo refrigeration systems for many
types of vessels, including passenger ships, logistical supply ships,
SHIP REFRIGERATED ROOM DESIGN refrigerated fruit carriers, refrigerated seafood carriers, and other
Marine refrigeration equipment for offshore vessels should be types of special-service vessels.
designed, selected, and applied to function properly under extreme
conditions with minimal dependence on expert servicing.
Specifications
Refrigeration specifications should set forth the extreme operat-
Refrigerated Room Construction ing conditions of loading, ambient and sea temperatures, and rates
Free water that might enter the insulation through faulty floor or of pulldown. In the all-purpose installation, each compartment
wall surfaces is the most harmful element to ships’ refrigerated should be designed for refrigeration of warm, fresh products from
rooms. Room linings and floor coverings should be made of mate- the field or orchard; for the overall condition, a percentage division
rials and have surface characteristics that give lifelong resistance to of chill and freezer cargo with simultaneous and total loading
should be stated.
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

water absorption by the insulation and adherence of moisture on the

room’s interior surfaces. Construction of reserve and built-in refrig- Typical conditions for a cargo vessel operating in all oceans with
erated rooms should follow details similar to those of convention- all cargoes include the following:
ally designed cargo holds. • Arrangement and net volume capacities of the refrigerated
Adequate floor drains that may be cleaned without lifting floor compartments
gratings should be provided and located so that, with the probable • Thicknesses and kinds of insulation
stowage plan, the drains are accessible for cleaning without moving • Ambient temperatures
shelving or excessive weights of stores. Weather surfaces 38°C
All details should comply with regulations of the U.S. Public Adjacent machinery spaces 38°C
Health Service, which also emphasizes ratproofing. U.S. ships are Other adjacent spaces 29°C
also subject to strict fire-resistance regulations. Sea temperatures 29°C
All doors and frames should be of sturdy construction to resist • Overall stowage factor 2.2 m3/Mg
frequent slamming and should have metal sheathing or reinforced • Percentage total loading as chill 75%
glass fiber doors. They should be large enough to facilitate loading Percentage total loading as freezer 25%
of stores. The locking device must allow release of its fastenings • Receiving temperature, chilled cargo 27°C
from the inside by a person accidentally locked in. Receiving temperature, frozen cargo –4°C
All rooms should have galvanized or stainless steel racks or • Carrying temperature, chilled cargo 1°C
shelves to meet storekeeping needs, and they should be easily Carrying temperature, frozen cargo –18°C
removable from their supports for rapid and thorough cleaning. The • Initial period of cargo heat removal (equivalent) 72 h
meat room and thaw room should have a single fore-and-aft meat • Replacement air at 29°C db, 24°C wb 3%
rail for miscellaneous uses and thawing, respectively. Floor gratings
or duckboards, fitted to each room, should be of a size and weight to The specification writer should describe the kind of refrigeration
facilitate removal and cleaning of gratings and the room. system to be installed and specify the number of compressors and
The refrigerators should be fitted with waterproof electrical fix- other auxiliary parts or apparatus together with sources of emer-
tures well guarded from damage by storing operations. Mount light- gency pumping and water facilities. All equipment and installations
ing switches inside each room at the door, with indicating lights in should be specified as complying with the rules and regulations of
the outer passageway. Each room should have an audible alarm for the Classification Societies (ABS, Lloyd’s Register, and others), the
use by any person inadvertently locked inside. U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Public Health Service, ASHRAE Stan-
Remote reading thermometers, from which room temperatures dard 15, and ASHRAE Standard 26.
can be read in the outside passageway, are essential to good opera- The owner’s representative should obtain from the vendors full
tions. The sensor should be located in a representative location in descriptions, details, capacities, and specifications of the equipment
the room, generally the geometric center at the ceiling. A large pas- proposed, to allow comparative analysis.
senger installation justifies a duplicate electronic thermometer, with Completion tests should be required to determine workmanship
the instrument located in the refrigeration machinery room. and functional performance. Performance guarantees should cover
Service boxes in the galley and pantries should be constructed operations under loaded service conditions.
with a minimum amount of wood. The linings and shelving should
be made of materials with a surface character that facilitates thor- Calculations
ough cleaning. Service refrigerators should not have raised door The following discussion of refrigeration load calculation con-
sills, and the floor should present a flush surface that is easily siderations for a general-service plant carrying heterogeneous
drained and cleaned. Cooling surfaces should be totally accessible chilled cargo may appear simplified, but it is justified by the great
for cleaning. Small units should be mounted without floor clearance range of conditions common to marine installations. Refrigeration
on elevated bases, or be provided with at least a 200 mm clearance loads for freezer cargo may be calculated in a similar manner using
to facilitate scrubbing underneath. the same stowage factor, a specific heat of 1.67 kJ/(kg·K), and an
 This file is licensed to Abdual Hadi Nema ([email protected]). License Date: 6/1/2010

Marine Refrigeration 26.7

equivalent pulldown period of 72 h. The loads for respiration heat, • All safety and operating controls should be used. In the event of a
replacement air, or latent heat of fusion will not be present. component failure, a back-up system should be available, or, ide-
Specialized service in known ambient conditions may be calculated ally, built into the system. On vessels with production freezing
more precisely, but an arbitrary 10% margin should still be added to the systems, it is advisable to provide enough redundancy to enable
results to compensate for aging and unforeseen heat gains. the vessel to reach port without allowing already frozen product
With general calculations, the following operating conditions to thaw, even if there is a failure of the production freezing plant.
should be assumed: • Upon completion, the vessel should be provided with all wiring
• Weather ambient conditions: Up to 38°C. and refrigerant flow diagrams, an operator’s manual, and a supply
• Ambient sea conditions: Up to 29°C. of spare parts.
• Conductivity of insulation: According to standards given for In the initial planning, the designer must know the following:
the material, urethane foam with an installed thermal conduc-
tivity k of about 0.022 W/(m·K) is suggested. • For what fisheries the vessel is being equipped and in what area of
• Resistivity of outer boundaries, inner linings, and surface films: the world the vessel will operate.
These factors should be ignored because boundaries and linings • In what future fisheries the vessel may be required to work. (At
are usually dense and have high conductivity values. this point, such considerations probably add little or no cost to the
• Infiltration and open-door leakage: For cargo refrigeration instal- system.) Necessary alterations may be as small as increasing
lations, these losses at sea are nil. Port exposures during loading spacing in the freezing racks.
and discharge reestablish pulldown conditions.
• Ventilation or replacement air: This factor is often omitted when Hold Preparation
carrying heterogeneous cargo for short to medium-length voy-
ages. For specialized service, it may be as much as 300% of the On any vessel presently being refrigerated or being fitted for future
gross room volume per hour. refrigeration installations, 100 mm or more of insulating spray-on
• Electrical energy conversion: The energy load from fans and brine urethane is recommended. Special attention must be given to insulat-
pumps is on-demand load rather than connected load. An arbitrary ing areas of high heat, such as engine rooms, bulkheads, and the
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

value of 85% efficiency may be used. underside of the main decks. High-heat sources, such as the hatch
• Product load: This factor ranges widely for heterogeneous cargo. coaming, shaft log, and fuel tanks with fuel returns from the engines,
Volume ranges from 1.25 to 3.75 m3/Mg; an average volume is must also be insulated. The insulation must be protected to prevent
2.2 m3/Mg. Specific heat ranges from 0.92 to 4.0 kJ/(kg·K). The moisture from destroying its insulating quality. Laid-up fiberglass is
gross weight of the package and the specific heat of the product often used because of its strength, low mass, and versatility. Pen board
should be used. guides, mounting brackets, and plate racks are at times fiberglassed
• Receiving temperature of cargo: Chilled cargo ranges from car- into the liner, and thus become a very secure part of the vessel. Fiber-
rying temperature to ambient. Frozen cargo ranges from –29 to glass has the advantage of being easily cleaned and sanitized.
–2°C.
• Carrying temperature of cargo: Ranges from 0 to 13°C for chilled REFRIGERATION WITH ICE
cargo, and –29 to –18°C for frozen foods.
• Respiratory heat of chilled cargo: Meat products, eggs, and Ice is commonly used to preserve groundfish, shrimp, halibut,
dairy products have no respiratory heat. Chapter 19 lists heat of and most other commercial species. Bin or pen boards are installed
respiration of many horticultural products at various storage to divide the hold as desired (Figure 2). Ice is usually stored in alter-
temperatures. nate bins so that it is handy for packing around the fish as the fish is
loaded into the adjacent bin. The crushed ice varies in size up to
120 mm lumps. As the fish are stowed with crushed ice, each pen is
FISHING VESSELS generally divided horizontally by inserting boards so that the bot-
tom fish are not crushed. The compartmentalized sections should
Nearly all types of fishing vessels, from small, open gill-netters
not be more than 760 mm high to avoid undesirable crushing and
to large factory processing ships, use refrigeration in one form or
bruising.
another to preserve their catch. Methods range from ice taken
aboard daily to sophisticated low-temperature production freezing The approximate amount of ice required is 1 Mg for each 2 Mg
systems and cold storages. of fish in summer, and 1 Mg to each 3 Mg of fish in winter, based on
a voyage of about 8 days. Less ice is needed if the ship has supple-
REFRIGERATION SYSTEM DESIGN mental refrigeration.
When designing a refrigeration system, the following issues
should be considered: Fig. 2 Typical Layout of Pens in Hold
• The vessel owner and design engineer must be aware of the mon-
etary value of a fully loaded fish hold. Money saved by selecting
and using substandard equipment may be a needless and expen-
sive gamble.
• The vessel may be hundreds of kilometres from a qualified service
technician and have very limited resources on board for emergency
repair. In the event of a system failure, effective initial design may
maintain temperatures longer, thus preserving the product.
• Marine refrigeration systems are subjected to severe conditions,
including high engine room temperatures, low ambient tempera-
tures, electrolysis, corrosion, impacts, and vibrations. In some
cases, these conditions are compounded by little or no mainte-
nance, or worse, abusive maintenance.
• The system should be well laid out, and designed to allow new
operators to adapt to the system quickly. Fig. 2 Typical Layout of Pens in Hold
 This file is licensed to Abdual Hadi Nema ([email protected]). License Date: 6/1/2010

26.8 2010 ASHRAE Handbook—Refrigeration (SI)

The method of stowing fish in ice is very important to maintain- drive motors and condenser(s) are sized for the extremes, not just for
ing quality. The depth of ice on the floor of the pen should be a min- the final temperature.
imum of 50 mm at the end of the voyage. This is obtained by having
the initial bedding of ice 25 mm thick for each day of the voyage. In PROCESS FREEZING AND COLD STORAGE
stowing, one or two layers of fish are laid on the bedding ice so that
the ice is just completely covered. In no case should the layer of fish Distant-water vessels are usually equipped for freezing and han-
exceed 300 mm in thickness. The top covering layer of ice is about dling the catch at sea because they stay out for weeks or even months,
230 mm thick, heaped up higher in the center than along the sides. making storage with ice or refrigerated seawater infeasible. Although
This method of stowing allows the pile to adjust itself to melting and many different vessels and freezing systems are used, the general
settling and results in good drainage of water and fish slime. types can be classified as either those freezing large whole fish, such
Many small fishing vessels are constructed of wood, with unin- as tuna and halibut, and those freezing processed and semiprocessed
sulated holds. Larger vessels are usually of steel construction with fishery products, such as fish blocks or groundfish in bulk lots.
insulated holds. Mechanical refrigeration is used on some vessels to The method of freezing is determined by the physical and bio-
keep ice from melting quickly and to maintain lower temperatures. chemical characteristics of the fish and the desired end product.
The most common mechanical system uses direct-expansion cool- For the most part, large fish such as tuna, which are eventually
ing coils under the overhead in the hold and sometimes around the canned and somewhat resistant to salt intake, are conveniently fro-
entire shell. zen in brine wells where space savings and ease of handling offer
convincing benefits. Cod, haddock, hake, pollack, and similar
REFRIGERATION WITH SEAWATER demersal or midwater species, which are more delicate than tuna,
are usually frozen rapidly either in vertical or horizontal plate
Refrigerated seawater is commonly used instead of ice for hold- freezers (see Figures 3 and 4), or in air-blast freezers. Other prod-
ing fish in satisfactory condition. The seawater is continuously ucts, such as crab, are frozen in flow-through sodium chloride
pumped either around the fish and over cooling coils placed along brine tanks.
the sides of the insulated tank, or through external chillers and then Virtually every type of equipment and method of freezing used in
Licensed for single user. © 2010 ASHRAE, Inc.

through, or over, the fish. Capacity requirements vary widely, and stationary installations is also used on vessels that freeze seafood at
are primarily determined by how quickly the water needs to be sea. Specialized products demand exacting methods of handling,
chilled before taking on fish. freezing, and packaging. Additional design and application infor-
Design of refrigerated seawater systems is unusual, in that their mation can be found in other documents not specifically related to
primary function is to operate at full capacity during pulldown. Extra marine systems.
care must be taken by the designer to ensure that the compressor
REFERENCES
Fig. 3 Typical Under-Deck Freezer Plate Installation ASHRAE. 2007. Safety standard for refrigeration systems. ANSI/ASHRAE
Standard 15-2007.
ASHRAE. 2006. Mechanical refrigeration and air-conditioning installations
aboard ship. ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 26-1996 (RA 2006).

BIBLIOGRAPHY
ABS. 1998. Rules for certification of cargo containers. American Bureau of
Shipping, Houston.
Heap, R., M. Kierstan, and G. Ford. 1998. Food transportation. Blackie
Academic & Professional, London.
Welby, E.M. and B. McGregor. 2004. Agricultural export transportation
handbook. Handbook 700. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington,
Fig. 3 Typical Underdeck Freezer Plate Installation D.C.

Fig. 4 Typical Marine Freezing Cell

Fig. 4 Typical Marine Freezing Cell

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