Hassan Sabbaghi; Aman Mohammad Ziaiifar; Mahdi Kashani-Nejad
Abstract
Introduction: Frying phenomena occur during the immersion of the product in oil at a temperature of 150–200 ºC, where a simultaneous heat and mass transfer take place. This is the most popular thermal processes of potato cooking. This fast drying is critical to improve the mechanical and structural ...
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Introduction: Frying phenomena occur during the immersion of the product in oil at a temperature of 150–200 ºC, where a simultaneous heat and mass transfer take place. This is the most popular thermal processes of potato cooking. This fast drying is critical to improve the mechanical and structural properties of the final product. These conditions lead to high heat transfer rates, rapid cooking, browning, texture and flavor development. The fried potato is easier to transport and provides better texture. Researchers have assumed the existence of two regions for fried product, separated by an interface: the core (unfried) and crust (fried) regions. In general, frying process is very complex for two main reasons: i) due to the simultaneous heat and mass transfer between food material and frying oil, ii) due to the progressive deterioration of the oil and structural changes in foods (crust and core regions). The moving boundary problem may be found in many areas of frying research involving heat and/or mass transfer. In this study, heat and mass transfer is entirely investigated during frying of potato strips. The transport phenomena during frying are including: i) Heat convection from the hot oil to the interface via the crust region, ii) Water evaporation at the moving interface at a temperature of 100 ºC, iii) The unsteady state heat conduction in both regions of crust and core, iv) The oil uptake into food. As a result, high temperature and low moisture conditions develop as frying proceeds. Water vapor bubbles escaping from the surface of the food cause considerable turbulence in the oil. Therefore, Heat and mass transfer are dependent on each other during frying process. In fact, heat and mass transfer during frying can be controlled by heat transfer at the product surface. Evaporation rate depends on the temperature difference between oil and boiling point of water. There is little information on modeling, both empirical and phenomenological, for moisture loss and oil uptake during frying. Knowledge of accurate heat and mass transfer parameters is important for modeling processes. Designing of frying processes is possible through the use of mathematical models. The aim of this study is to develop a more completely and realistic approach for determining of heat and mass transfer parameters and their relation to oil temperatures. The main process parameters influencing oil uptake are frying temperature and duration. Heat transfer coefficients for different oil temperatures determined using simple method. Mass transfer of water was assumed to be governed by Fick's law of diffusion. For more details, empirical models were used to describe the mass transport in forms of moisture and oil.
Materials and Methods: The frying operation of potato strips was performed in the fryer that was equipped by thermo controller system with K type thermocouple at three different oil temperature of 145, 160 and 175 ºC for 60, 120, 180 and 240 seconds. The core temperature changes of product recorded on computer during process using T type thermocouple connected to data logger. The moisture and oil content of samples measured for each process time and temperatures. The heat and mass transfer parameters such as kinetic coefficients of moisture (Km) and oil transfer (Ko), mass transfer coefficient (Kc), effective diffusivity (D) and heat transfer coefficient (h) were evaluated with dimensionless temperature and concentration ratio plots and also empirical equations. Relationship of these parameters to the temperature of the oil investigated using the Arrhenius equation. Thermal conductivity of potato strips during frying determined as a function of moisture content using the Anderson and Spell equations.
Results & Discussion: The results showed that mass transfer Biot number (Bim), mass transfer coefficient (Kc) and effective moisture diffusivity (D) increased significantly with increasing in oil temperature. In regression models, the linear correlation between kinetic constant of water loss and oil uptake was observed that is verification on effect of drying pretreatment on reducing oil uptake. In fact, with increasing of oil temperature the kinetic constant of water loss increased and caused increased in kinetic constant of oil uptake. Kinetic models could correctly confirm determination of mass transfer parameters. The heat transfer Biot number (Bih), convective heat transfer coefficient (h) and product thermal conductivity (k) decreased significantly with an increase in process temperature. With increasing in the rate of evaporation, following greater amount of input energy used for water loss. This would reduce the amount of available energy to increase internal energy of product and thus reduce the convective heat transfer coefficient at high temperatures. Frying process caused remove of water from product and increasing of porosity, thus observed gradually fell in thermal conductivity. Although the minimum thermal conductivity at various temperatures are close together, but two equations of Anderson and Spell showed significant difference for values of thermal conductivity and Spell was more close to published papers. High activation energy is achieved for lower moisture content that is normally due to the strong water-substrate interaction.
Hassan Sabbaghi; Aman Mohammad Ziaiifar; Alireza Sadeghi Mahoonak; Mahdi Kashani-Nejad; Habibollah Mirzaee
Abstract
Introduction: Heat transfer processes are important for almost all aspects of food preparation and play a key role in determining food safety. Temperature difference between the source of heat and the receiver of heat is the driving force in heat transfer. Convection is the transfer of heat by the movement ...
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Introduction: Heat transfer processes are important for almost all aspects of food preparation and play a key role in determining food safety. Temperature difference between the source of heat and the receiver of heat is the driving force in heat transfer. Convection is the transfer of heat by the movement of groups of molecules in a fluid. The groups of molecules may be moved by either density changes or forced motion of the fluid. In a typical convective heat transfer a hot surface heats the surrounding fluid, which is then carried away by fluid movement. The convection heat transfer coefficient or h value is defined as the rate of heat that will be convected at the product surface–fluid interaction through a unit surface area of the material if a unit temperature gradient exists between the product surface and the surrounding fluid and is very important in modeling and design of frying systems for foods. Frying is a very turbulent process with random and dynamic movement of small bubble particles over the boundary layer of the product surface. Deep fat frying is a very fast method of food processing among conventional heat transfer methods. The frying by immersion can be divided into four stages: (1) initial heating (the temperature of the internal part is slowly increased to boiling point); (2) surfaces boiling (crust formation and higher oil turbulence); (3) falling rate (long period, vapor transfer at the surface decreases) and (4) bubble end point (dried product). These four states during frying can be generalized as non-boiling phases (stages 1 and 4) and boiling phases (stages 2 and 3). So, Convection heat transfer during immersion frying may be divided into two stages: 1) free convection during initial heating of the material and 2) forced convection during the boiling phase. In this study, the convective heat transfer coefficient investigated as a function of the water loss rate during frying process due to the effects of evaporation and boiling on this thermal parameter. Understanding of changes in heat transfer coefficient for thermal control of the frying process is very important to achieve optimum quality of product. Materials and Methods: The potato stripes with specified size are fried at temperature of 145, 160 and 175 °C for 60, 120, 180 and 240 seconds using sunflower oil. The center and surface temperatures of potato stripes were recorded with two-second intervals using T type thermocouple and data logger. Moisture content of French fries was measured by drying them within an oven instrument. Mean moisture and oil content of potato stripes was measured. The h value was estimated and its changes studied during process using heat energy balance between the sample and oil by assuming that total heat transferred by convection from oil to potato is equal to the sum of energy spent on heating potato and energy spent on water evaporation. Moreover, changes in the fraction of total heat used for evaporation at different temperatures were expressed as an empirical model. Results and Discussion: The results showed that the temperature at the center increased up to the evaporation temperature (“A” zone: about 60 seconds after process beginning). Then, it remained constant at this temperature for a while due to evaporation (“B” zone: about from 60 s till 160 s). This constant temperature period decreased as temperature increased. After this period, the center temperature approached to that of oil (“C” zone: increasing product surface temperature to oil temperature). These various stages of the process were separated. The moisture loss rate was high at the beginning of frying and oil uptake increased as the moisture content diminished. As oil temperature increases, the sample moisture content for the same frying period decreases since an increase in temperature results in a higher kinetic energy for water molecules leading to a more rapid moisture loss in form of vapor. The heat transfer coefficient is increased as the oil temperature increased and at the first time of process observed higher h value. It was due to more water loss rate and so the higher turbulence within the oil before crust formation and for elevated temperatures. The maximum heat transfer coefficient for the temperatures of 175, 160 and 145 °C is estimated 943.68, 847.81 and 682.64 W/m2°C, respectively. Estimated h value also shows a linear increase with water loss rate. Since most of the energy used is associated with the evaporation of water present in the potato, for lower temperatures, the fraction of total heat needed to complete the evaporation is higher and it also represents lower h values by reducing the oil temperature. Also, the variation in the fraction of total heat used for water evaporation showed exponential rise to maximum behavior. Conclusion: The proposed model for studying evaporation heat fraction fitted experimental data properly, with standard error values range of 0.01-0.03. Evaporation heat fraction could have been affected by oil temperature changes, water loss rate and h value (linear depend with the water loss rate) during process.
