Cascade control of a Peltier-based thermal plant with asymmetry and time delay for cold chain simulation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17979/ja-cea.2026.47.13648Keywords:
Postharvest supply chain, Shelf life, Physical twin, Cascade PID control, Peltier modulesAbstract
Temperature fluctuations during refrigerated transport significantly affect the quality and shelf life of perishable products, leading to premature waste. This study presents the design and implementation of a control system for a high-precision climate chamber based on Peltier modules. The objective is to replicate, in real-time, the dynamic thermal profiles detected during the transport of perishable goods. The system exhibits strong dynamic asymmetry between heating and cooling cycles, as well as significant transport delays. A cascade control architecture is proposed, integrating a fast-response inner loop for the Peltier cells and an outer loop for the air temperature. To address non-linearities, two-degree-of-freedom PID controllers with anti-windup schemes are implemented, alongside a Smith Predictor for dead-time compensation and hysteresis for switching between cooling and heating modes. The results demonstrate the system’s ability to track variable setpoints with high precision. This enables its use as a physical twin of the postharvest chain to evaluate food shelf life through predictive models and reduce waste.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Javier M. Garrido-López, Manuel Jiménez-Buendía, Ana Toledo-Moreo, Pedro A. Buendía-Rivas, Roque Torres-Sánchez
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