Design and Building a Solar Powered Mobile Refrigeration

Abstract

The customer of this project is the Seed Fork of the Highlands, a non-profit charitable organization that provides economic, education, and therapeutic opportunities for the local citizens. The motivation behind this project is to provide our senior projects team an opportunity for a community service. The ultimate goal of this project is to provide a functional solar-powered mobile refrigerated trailer that can transport vegetables and fruits throughout the upper Cumberland needy people. Several hurdles our team are facing. These includes the reconstruct 30-R thermally insulated panels to fit on top of the donated trailer; sealing the refrigeration unit; mounting the refrigeration unit on top of the trailer; installing the refrigeration unit on a fixed mount, creating the unit to be all weather proof, and designing a solar energy kit to power the refrigeration unit on the move.
The team has received multiple donations to support this project. That includes monetary and a two-axle trailer and insulated panels for constructing the refrigeration unit. In order to keep food fresh inside the refrigeration unit during transportation, we acquired an Energy Star LG 15,000 BTUs window air conditioner unit to keep the temperature inside the unit at 35oF. We installed a waterproof insulated floor to prevent any heat transfer from the bottom of refrigeration unit. Guided by the RV polar power demand, the team selected a complete solar and pure sine wave inverter system to charge the batteries. This system will gives the freedom for mobility using DC/AC without connecting to the grid.