Energy usage reduction in supermarket refrigerated food cabinets

Abstract

Minimizing energy usage has always been a major aspect of the engineering design. Because of the increase in the expectations of the well-off population in the world for more comfort and convenience, the usage of energy has increased dramatically. A major usage of energy is in transport, air-conditioning, and refrigeration. The current changing of weather patterns, such as more frequent cyclones, floods, and extreme temperatures, which some believe is due to global warming and caused by our excessive usage of energy that releases greenhouse emissions, urges us to take a stand on reducing our energy usage and hence our carbon footprint. This entry will concentrate on how to reduce the energy usage in refrigerated food cabinets in supermarkets. It will present three phases in which attention to detail and usage of recent research findings can make a big difference. These are the design phase, the commissioning phase, and the maintenance phase. This entry also briefly presents some introductory information on the different commercial refrigeration systems and the basics of refrigeration.