Effects of composition and temperature on the specific heat of Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) muscle

Abstract

Precise knowledge of thermophysical properties is essential to understand the dynamics of thermal processing of foods. In this study, specific heat values of Japanese anchovy muscles with different fat contents were measured by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). As the results of quantification of crude fat and moisture contained in the muscles, the sum of the crude fat content and the moisture content was almost constant even though the fat content varied by the purchase month and by the body position. The specific heat of anchovy muscle evaluated at 100°C increased linearly with the moisture content. The specific heat also increased slightly but linearly with elevating temperature from 62 to 115°C. An empirical equation was deduced based on the above results and found to give fairly good approximations to the measured values of specific heat.