Design Failure Mode and Effect Analysis of Liquid Nitrogen Based Refrigerated Standalone Transportable Container

Liquid nitrogen (LN₂) based refrigerated transportable standalone system named “SHIVAY” has been developed at RRCAT for transportation and storage of perishable fruits and vegetables (F&V) at required temperature. Reliable and safe operation of refrigerated system is crucial for preserving quality of stored F&V in container during transportation. Design Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (DFMEA) of SHIVAY to diagnose, evaluate and alleviate probable design failures is discussed in this paper. The analysis perceives breakdown of components, identifies probable failure modes, assess the effect on performance/safety and evaluates the risk involved. The DFMEA provides Risk Priority Numbers (RPN) for various possibilities of failure. High RPN number events have been identified like solenoid valve malfunction, leak in heat exchanger etc. and proper measures have been incorporated to improve reliability. DFMEA provided a detailed assessment for the possible design improvements to ensure operational safety and performance of system.