Detection and Analysis of the Thermal Conduction in Foodstuffs during Cooling Procedure

Abstract

Conduction of heat from a variety of solidified foods induced close to the cooling plane was detected precisely along a one-dimensional axis. Cooling commenced rapidly, followed by a gradual reduction in rate and eventual suspension of the process. The observed cooling patterns of the solidified food samples result from the relaxation process without experimental error caused by the phase transition of the sample components. Such a cooling behavior of solidified foods is different from the behavior following the heating of foods. Thus, the cooling of foods can simply be attributed to the relaxation process of thermal energy with a series of relaxation times along the one-dimensional axis of the cooling plane.