Cold room — Leipzig.

What is a cold box?

A cold room (or cold box) is an insulated thermal envelope that maintains a cold environment, commonly used for the temperature-controlled storage of food and pharmaceutical products. Here, the cold box is a refrigerated hall of 23,700 m³ with little floor insulation (exposed concrete slab).

Thermal audit of the cold room

Leakage-rate study

The team carried out surveys to estimate the leakage rate between the two main zones. At the sectional door of the freezer zone, leaks appear in the lower part facing the loading zone (severed seal, air passage). This type of door causes a higher leakage rate than standard airtight doors; high rates are also recorded at the cardboard pass-through hatches.

Infrared thermography of insulation defects

The thermal camera assessed the insulation of the two zones and revealed a thermal bridge between the cold box and the outside, due to a construction defect — affecting the temperature performance and causing energy over-consumption.

CFD simulation of a cold room

The CFD studies illustrate the air circulation in the room: heat transport through the walls and the air, circulation around the walls, doors and shelves, cold distribution and distribution of temperature and humidity around the products. The airflow movements make it possible to determine the direction and speed of the air, and to predict the recirculation and bypass effects.

Air distribution and redundancy

The aim is to precisely assess the airflow movements in the freezer zone for a design with 4 control systems. The simulation makes it possible to define the optimal placement of the new system, ensuring redundancy without creating low-velocity zones, recirculations or bypass that could cause a temperature rise.

Thanks to numerical simulation, EOLIOS anticipates many scenarios and the unexpected events linked to stratification, recirculations, bypass phenomena and failure scenarios — for innovative solutions facing the climatic, thermal and fire risks of high-bay premises.