CFD MODELING OF AIR COOLING OF MULTIPLE BEEF CARCASSES USING 3D GEOMETRICAL MODELS

Fast cooling of beef carcasses has an important effect on reducing color instability in the deep muscles of the carcass. A numerical simulation of beef carcass chilling was done by using a digital scan of beef carcass geometry and measured values of flow properties. The scanning process and measurement were conducted in an industrial chiller to obtain realistic working condition for the simulation input. Simulation of 60h chilling was performed for a single and multiple carcasses. Simulation results were validated with measurements and the effect of flow direction on the cooling rate was analyzed.