Technical study on fish cooling refrigerator using Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) fuel generator on fishing vessel

Abstract

Fish is an important commodity with high economic value, and is a source of protein with affordable prices and abundant quantities. Proteins from fresh fish are essential nutrients for growth and as constituents of the cells. Yet, fish is one of the most perishable foods due to its composition. Many efforts have been done to maintain the freshness of fish. This research was aimed to improve fish handling in fishing vessel by inventing a refrigerator cooling system with an LPG fuel generator as a power source. The use of LPG was based on the availability of natural gas that is still abundant, environmentally friendly and cheaper than fuel. The calculation of refrigeration heat load was carried out by applying the formula that is available in heat transfer theory. Since the refrigeration heat load obtained was 1,533 Watt for all fish storage of fishing vessel, then the type and capacity of generator was easily determined. Application of LPG-fuel generator for refrigeration use in fishing vessel was economically competitive with 22.75% lower operating costs. Finally, re-arrangement was carried out by adjusting layout of fishing vessel for application of LPG-fuel generators to operate refrigerator.