Insulated Shellfish Storage Venting for CO2 Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Maintaining the health of live shellfish during dry storage and transport without water immersion or flow is challenging due to the accumulation of carbon dioxide (CO2) inside insulated containers, which is heavier than air and leads to elevated levels that can cause mortality and metabolic stress.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating vents in the walls of insulated containers located below the expected height of the shellfish gills to allow CO2 to escape, while maintaining insulation and preventing water leakage, along with optional features like gas permeable membranes and CO2 scrubbing materials to manage CO2 levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If insulated containers are used for dry storage of shellfish, then storage and transport without water immersion is enabled, but CO2 accumulates inside the container causing mortality and metabolic stress
Solution Approach 1:
The container wall is segmented to include specific ventilation openings at strategic locations. The vent is positioned at a height that allows CO2 to escape while preventing water leakage, creating a segmented structure that simultaneously addresses gas exchange and liquid containment requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The container incorporates porous or perforated wall structures at specific heights to enable selective passage of gases while blocking liquids. The ventilation opening acts as a porous barrier that permits CO2 diffusion outward while the surface tension and positioning prevent water from passing through.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If ventilation openings are added to allow CO2 escape, then CO2 accumulation is reduced, but liquid leakage may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The ventilation opening is positioned at a specific local height on the container wall that corresponds to the expected liquid level. This localized placement creates a quality distinction between the upper portion (allowing gas passage) and lower portion (maintaining liquid seal), enabling selective permeability based on spatial position.
Solution Approach 2:
The design copies the natural behavior of shellfish gills, which are positioned at a specific height above the substrate in their natural environment. By placing the vent at a corresponding height relative to the container bottom, the system replicates the favorable gas exchange conditions that shellfish experience in nature while preventing water loss.
3Ease of operation
If the vent is positioned below the gill height to allow CO2 escape, then gas exchange is improved, but the risk of water leakage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The vent position is precisely parameterized relative to container dimensions and shellfish characteristics. The height is calculated as a specific parameter that balances CO2 removal efficiency against water leakage prevention, creating an optimized design point that satisfies both gas exchange and liquid containment requirements simultaneously.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Reduces CO2 accumulation, improving shellfish vitality and reducing mortality during transport by allowing effective gas exchange, enabling longer storage times and access to more markets.
Implementation Method 1
allow CO2 produced by the live shellfish to escape the insulated container
Implementation Method 2
allow CO2 produced by the live shellfish to escape the insulated container
Implementation Method 3
a gas permeable and water-resistant structure, adjacent to the vent, to form a water-resistant seal over the vent
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
Various embodiments relating to insulated and ventilated shellfish storage, for transport for example, are disclosed. An insulated container includes a bottom and walls defining an interior space to accommodate live shellfish. A CO2 handling feature to handle CO2 that is released into the interior space by the live shellfish is also provided. The CO2 handling feature could include, for example, a ventilated wall having a vent at a location toward the bottom of the insulated container, CO2 scrubbing, a CO2 accumulation structure to accumulate CO2 below the live shellfish, and/or a ventilated wall substantially parallel to the bottom to divide the interior space into an animal section to accommodate the live shellfish and a CO2 accumulation section to accumulate CO2. Embodiments are based on a discovery by the inventor that CO2 is a limiting factor for storage time of crustaceans out of water.