Refrigeration System Pusa-FSF

In news: Women scientists from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) of ICAR developed Refrigeration System Pusa-FSF & a technology related to extraction of gluten from wheat dough and its regeneration

A brief note on the Pusa-Farm SunFridge (Pusa-FSF)

• It is a 100% solar-powered battery-less cold store that can preserve around 2 tonnes of freshly-harvested produce at 3-4°C during the day and 8-12°C at nighttime.
• Pusa-FSF is  an on-farm green energy refrigeration system, and is the culmination of more than five years of work by a scientist at IARI’s Division of Agricultural Engineering, in collaboration with researchers from Michigan State University.
• The 10x10x10 ft cold store structure designed by the scientists can stock enough vegetables and fruits to fully load a Tata 407 mini truck. 
• The Pusa-FSF, built on dismantlable mild steel frames and plates, has been installed at IARI’s New Delhi campus and two villages – Picholiya in Rajasthan’s Ajmer district and Chamrara in Panipat, Haryana.
• The technology has been licensed to Jaipur-based SND Infraprojects Pvt. Ltd 
• The total cost is Rs 5-5.5 lakh

How does it work?

• Pusa-FSF has rooftop solar panels that generate 5 kilowatt power, of which 3 KW is used to run a 1.5-tonne air-conditioner and bring down the temperature inside the structure to 3-4°C. 
• This has been done by dispensing with the thermostat that limits the normal cooling in ACs to 16-17°C. 
• The panels also power a 105-watt submersible pump circulating about 1,000 litres of water from a tank through overhead PVC pipes. 
• The AC and submersible pump operate throughout the day when the sun is out and automatically shut in the evenings.
• At night, there is only passive evaporative cooling, with the water chilled during the day acting as a natural heat sink. 
• This, along with the materials that scientists have used (mesh, wetted nylon felt fabric walls, styrofoam/thermocol insulation and autoclaved aerated concrete floor), ensures that the nighttime temperatures are also maintained within 8-12°C,

Significance of Pusa-FSF

• It minimises the post-harvest losses, by having a cold store at the farm itself and running on solar power without any electricity from the grid. 
• This can be taken in a single trip to the market when the prices are right.

Technology related to extraction of gluten

• It is a technology for imparting elasticity and structural strength to bajra and maize dough, making their chapattis as soft as from regular wheat atta flour.
• Is regeneration in bajra (pearl-millet) and makka (maize) flour, which can be easily kneaded to yield soft rotis, pooris and a variety of bakery products.

• The proteins extracted and dried into powder should also have the capacity for regeneration or forming gluten networks in non-wheat dough. 
• Soft atta requires the gluten proteins added in the flour to achieve proper networking for retaining their original viscoelasticity and water-absorbing properties
• The scientists at IARI have created gluten-based soft bajra and makka atta that combine the superior nutritional composition of these two cereals with the better dough and chapati-making quality of wheat. 
• Their ‘Hallur’ soft bajra flour containing 23% protein, including 15% of pearl millet and 8% gluten can be used to make kachori and even cookies, cupcakes and pizza slices. 
• Scientists claim to have also prepared nachos from their ‘Makai’ soft maize atta.