When affordable and effective post-harvest storage solutions are not available or affordable, people living in off-grid rural communities will often experience spoilage of fruits and vegetables, loss of income, lack of access to nutritious foods, and large amounts of time spent to purchase and sell produce.

Evaporative cooling devices have the potential to provide a low-cost, locally available, and effective solution for improving fruit and vegetable shelf life (especially with increasing climate change and the need for adaptive solutions). D-Lab researchers are working with the University of Nairobi to improve the design of room-sized evaporative cooling chambers (4m x 4m x 2m) capable of storing several tons of fruits and vegetables. In addition to exploring new materials and geometries for these chambers, an automated control system will be required to regulate the supply of water and air flow. This system reduces hunger, increases food security and is powered by electricity (enabling clean energy as a power source). Furthermore, evaporative cooling requires less energy than traditional solutions by taking advantage of climate.

The Github Repository is Here, but you need MIT credentials to access it.