Yesterday...

. . . the use of machinery for cooling was very limited. There were some natural types of refrigeration, such as storing things in ice, or keeping food in larders away from direct sunlight. These techniques were not very effective at maintaining the low temperatures needed to preserve food and other substances.

. . . in order to provide more food to match the growing population and to keep food for longer, scientists developed machines to freeze or cool things. These refrigerating machines were made of electrical components and chemicals which react to produce the change in temperature. To find out more about how refrigerators work see Science and Your Fridge

Today . . .

. . . over time, people have found more and more uses for refrigeration. Many different types of refrigerator have been developed by scientists and engineers and they have become widely used in farming, food production, factories, buildings and shops. Nowadays, most people in Europe have at least one fridge (and usually a freezer) in their home, and air conditioning in their offices and cars.

How do you think the increased use of refrigeration is impacting on our environment?

• Firstly refrigeration uses a lot of energy. It is estimated that up to 20% of energy consumption in the average home in Europe is used to refrigerate things. To find out more go to Global Warming. Some of the commercial uses are shown in the chart below.

Commercial refrigeration market shown by industry according
to electricity consumption (1993). From ETSU, Energy
efficiency best practice programme (AEA Technology plc)
research data.

• Secondly, certain chemicals in machinery used to cool, chill or freeze are very harmful to the environment if they are released into the atmosphere. To find out more go to the Ozone Layer.