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Simulations and Sensors in Agri-Food Supply Chains
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 16:22:08
Abstract
This course provides students with expert knowledge and skills on how to effectively apply physics-based simulations and sensing in the supply chain of horticultural crops. The main targets are to use these technologies to better preserve food quality, extend shelf life and reduce food waste and the associated carbon footprint.
Objective
The course targets the postharvest part of the supply chain, as products pass through pre-cooling facilities, refrigerated containers and trucks, and cold storage facilities, before arriving at the retailer and consumer. We target supply chains of both domestic and tropical horticultural crops, including apple, citrus, mangoes, and berries. In addition, other applications in agri-food chains are highlighted, such as preharvest sensing and monitoring for horticultural crops as well as physics-based simulations and sensing in supply chains of foods of animal origin (meat or milk). In the course, we target innovative solutions that are enabled by the augmented insight that simulations and sensing provide with respect to the biophysical processes driving food decay in the cold chain. A key focus of the course is on digital tools for the agri-food chain, such as digital twins, food simulants, and sensors. A key objective is to gain specialized knowledge in order to: - Identify which postharvest practices are most suitable for a certain produce and supply chain (e.g. dynamic controlled atmosphere, modified atmosphere packaging, ethylene scrubbing, passive evaporative cooling) for developed and developing countries - Identify which heat and mass transfer processes (e.g. conduction, convection, radiation, respiration, evaporation) play a key role for a certain produce and supply chain - Identify which state-of-the-art sensing technology is most optimal for a certain produce and supply chain (e.g. wireless communication, blockchain technology, and biophysical twins) - Assess if a physics-based model and simulation is built up according to best practices, and if the reported results are realistic - Understand the link of the cooling process to the evolution of food quality attributes Another key objective is to acquire skills in order to: - Perform hands-on multiphysics simulations of food cooling processes - Measure hands-on a food cooling process with several types of sensors - Calculate food shelf-life by experiments and kinetic-rate-law modeling
Content
The course is built up of lectures, hands-on exercise sessions, and an excursion. The student will then apply this knowledge to assess postharvest problems (in a group) and develop solution strategies. Throughout the course, we also review upcoming national and international startups and companies in these fields. The content is as follows: 1. Introduction to the postharvest value chain 2. Postharvest quality and losses 3. Bio-environmental heat and mass transfer 4. Sensors & food simulants 5. Basics & best practice of physics-based simulations 6. Current and emerging postharvest technologies 7. Hands-on sessions on physics-based simulation and sensors 8. Excursion
Resources
Lecture Notes
Handouts of the slides will be provided
Literature
Recommended literature (not-obligatory): Datta (2017), Heat and Mass Transfer: A Biological Context. CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. Thompson (2008), Commercial cooling of fruits, vegetables and flowers, University of California. University of California, California.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- MSC
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- end-of-semester examination
- Mode
- oral 30 minutes
Registration & Places
- Max Places
- 50
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture with exercise | Simulations and Sensors in Agri-Food Supply Chains |
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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Electives Courses (Elective courses can be chosen from the entire course programme of the ETH Zurich as well as from the course programme of the University of Zurich.)
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