Temperature measurement during microwave cooking.

Abstract

Product development of microwavable foods originally suffered from a high degree of non-uniform heating which is generic in microwave heating. Typically, foods have suffered from either overheated edges or under heated centres. This was compounded by short reheat times which allowed little opportunity for temperature equilibration. A crucial step in overcoming this problem has been the understanding provided from time-temperature data. Conventional temperature measurements by thermocouple, etc. are inappropriate in microwave cooking due to the high electric fields which are present (ca 15 kV/m). The result is either very significant interference, or even failure of the sensor. Therefore, alternative methods were developed to meet the need, some of which are discussed in this paper. One such measurement system is the now commonplace fibre optic probe, originally from Luxtron. The discrete data provided from this system are compared with the surface imaging data delivered by thermal imaging. These techniques are discussed in the context of microwave packaging materials heated in situ in a microwave oven and the need for temperature data as a basis for establishing testing regimes.