Maintaining the correct temperature inside a refrigerated truck does not necessarily mean that every pallet is being cooled evenly. New research from Switzerland’s Empa laboratories demonstrates how digital twins could help logistics operators identify temperature variations within a shipment, improve cold-chain performance, and reduce food waste.
Researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) developed a physics-based digital twin that simulates airflow and heat transfer throughout a refrigerated trailer. The model estimates temperatures at different locations within the cargo, providing greater visibility than conventional monitoring systems that may rely on a single temperature sensor.
Testing the Technology in a Commercial Shipment
The researchers tested the model using a four-day shipment of 31 pallets of oranges and lemons traveling from Greece to Switzerland. They installed 108 sensors throughout the load to compare actual temperatures with the digital twin’s predictions.
The results revealed an important challenge. Although the refrigeration system maintained temperatures between 4 and 6 degrees Celsius, some oranges in the middle of the trailer reached 10.8 degrees.
The researchers determined that insufficiently precooled pallets were a likely explanation. Their simulations showed how warmer products could transfer heat to neighboring pallets, while packaging design and pallet positioning influenced airflow and cooling effectiveness.
Implications for Cold-Chain Logistics
The findings suggest that digital twins could eventually help shippers and transportation providers optimize pallet arrangements, evaluate packaging designs, and identify temperature-related risks before products reach their destinations.
By integrating real-time sensor data with physics-based models, operators could potentially identify shipments requiring additional inspection or prioritize products with shorter remaining shelf lives.
The technology remains under development, but its potential extends beyond temperature monitoring to more proactive management of product quality throughout transportation.
For refrigerated transportation providers, the research highlights an important distinction: maintaining the correct trailer temperature is not the same as maintaining the correct product temperature.
Source: Empa — Digital Twins for Refrigerated Trucks, November 3, 2026.
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