Logging Temperatures during High Pressure Frying
In industrial cooking, high pressure frying produces more juicy and tender food than traditional atmospheric frying - the vapour naturally released from the food generating the pressure. Food scientists from the University of Mersin, Turkey and Lund University, Sweden, are studying how modifying factors that affect the boiling temperature of the oil in pressure frying may make the food more desirable. As part of their research they are using Windmill Software to continually collect data (https://www.windmillsoft.com/daqshop/rs232-modbus.html).
The scientists needed to determine accurate temperature distribution: from this they could judge texture development, colour changes and the formation of carcinogenic substance.
As part of their experiments they fried potato slabs in a modified pressure cooker. During frying they placed the pressure cooker on an analytical scale from Elastocon AB. They connected the scale to a PC via RS232. Windmill software, running on the PC, took weight readings throughout the frying process. Loss of water vapour through the pressure cooker's safety valve led to a decrease in the system mass, and this mass change allowed the calculation of the rate of change in mass in the potato sample over time.
Every 2 seconds, Windmill recorded the change in mass of the frying system. From this, and the temperature measurements, the researchers could determine the heat transfer coefficient and thus temperature distribution.
The Windmill RS232 data collection software is currently reduced from to £145 to £50 in our on-line catalogue: https://www.windmillsoft.com/daqshop/rs232-modbus.html
Further Reading:
Erdogdu, F. and P. Dejmek, "Determination of Heat
Transfer Coefficient during High Pressure Frying of
Potatoes", J. Food Eng., 96, 528-532 (2010)
http://journals2.scholarsportal.info/details.xqy?uri=/02608774/unassigned/nfp_dohtcdhpfop
