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  • Review Article
  • Published:

Refrigeration technologies to increase cold chain sustainability

Nature Reviews Clean Technology volume 1, pages 604–620 (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

The cold chain is an essential system of temperature-controlled logistics that ensures the quality and safety of perishable goods. Refrigeration technologies in the chain, which mostly use vapour-compression refrigeration, have large direct and indirect negative environmental impacts linked to high energy consumption and the use of refrigerants with high global warming potential. This Review examines the technical and environmental challenges of refrigeration systems used in transport (road, sea and air) and stationary applications (refrigerated warehouses and retail stores). Across applications, refrigerants with low global warming potential, phase-change materials and vacuum-insulation panels could be used to reduce energy consumption and emissions, with some demonstrations showing reductions of 25–86%. In road transport, photovoltaic-powered refrigeration and hybrid cooling systems could be implemented to reduce emissions but adoption is impeded by high costs and safety concerns. Improved thermal insulation and waste-heat recovery for fresh transportation could be used in sea transport. Advanced energy management and renewable energy integration could be leveraged in stationary storage to reduce emissions by up to 60% and enable off-grid refrigeration. In all of these applications, operational reliability must be maintained, which will require coordinated industry efforts and policy support.

Key points

  • Natural refrigerants like R744 (carbon dioxide), R717 (ammonia) and hydrocarbons are increasingly used in stationary and marine-transport refrigeration systems, but their broader adoption is limited by flammability, toxicity and system-efficiency issues, as well as regulatory gaps, especially in transport applications.

  • Phase-change materials can be adopted in both transport and stationary systems to stabilize temperatures and lower energy use, but their effectiveness is limited by challenges such as material stability, supercooling and long-term performance, and in transport applications, their weight and placement may affect vehicle safety and design constraints.

  • Renewable energy, particularly solar photovoltaics, can be integrated into stationary refrigeration and some road-transport applications, although road systems face space and weight constraints that hinder full deployment compared with more adaptable stationary set-ups.

  • Air transport requires lightweight, compact solutions to balance efficiency and safety, relying on technologies such as electric vapour-compression refrigeration systems, phase-change materials, and vacuum insulation panels, facing strict safety regulations, high operational costs, and limited adoption of natural refrigerants owing to flammability concerns and space constraints.

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Fig. 1: Cold chain transportation temperatures.
Fig. 2: Refrigeration technologies used in cold chain transport.
Fig. 3: Overview and opportunities of refrigeration in the cold chain.

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Acknowledgements

P.G.-P. acknowledges grant CIACIF/2021/182, funded by the Generalitat Valenciana (GV) and the European Social Fund (ESF).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Salerno, Fisciano, Italy

    Fabio Petruzziello, Arcangelo Grilletto, Claudio Cilenti, Angelo Maiorino & Ciro Aprea

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering and Construction, Jaume I University, Castelló de la Plana, Spain

    Manel Martínez-Angeles, Pau Giménez-Prades, Adrián Mota-Babiloni & Rodrigo Llopis

  3. Idal Group SpA, Salerno, Italy

    Anna Del Sorbo

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  1. Fabio Petruzziello
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  2. Arcangelo Grilletto
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Contributions

F.P., A.G., C.C., A.M. and C.A. contributed equally to all aspects of the article. M.M.-A., P.G.-P., A.D.S., A.M.-B. and R.L. contributed substantially to discussion of the content and reviewed and edited the manuscript before submission.

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Correspondence to Angelo Maiorino.

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A.D.S. is the General Manager at Idal Group SpA (Salerno, Italy). The other authors declare no competing interests.

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Glossary

Barocaloric effect

Change in the temperature of a material, caused by a pressure change.

CO2 equator

Ambient temperature (between 30 °C and 35 °C) limit, above which CO2 refrigeration systems lose efficiency because of transcritical operation.

Coefficient of performance

Ratio measuring the efficiency of a refrigeration system, defined as the cooling effect produced divided by the input energy.

Cold plate

A thermally conductive plate, typically containing phase-change materials, that transfers energy to products.

Elastocaloric effect

Change in temperature of a material caused by the application or removal of mechanical stress and strain.

Electrocaloric effect

Change in temperature of a material caused by the application or removal of an electric field.

Hermetic compressor

A compressor that is fully sealed within the motor housing, preventing refrigerant leaks.

Magnetocaloric effect

Change in temperature of a material caused by the application or removal of a magnetic field.

Open compressor

The compressor and the motor are separated, allowing for maintenance but increasing leakage risks.

Phase-change material

A substance able to absorb or release heat during phase change.

Pull-down time

The time needed for a refrigeration system to cool a refrigerated space from ambient temperature to the setpoint.

Transport refrigeration unit

A refrigeration system designed to operate in vehicles transporting perishable products.

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Petruzziello, F., Grilletto, A., Cilenti, C. et al. Refrigeration technologies to increase cold chain sustainability. Nat. Rev. Clean Technol. 1, 604–620 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44359-025-00094-6

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