CHARACTERIZING THE DETACHMENT OF THERMAL AND GEOMETRIC CENTERS IN A PARALLELEPIPEDIC FROZEN FOOD SUBJECTED TO A FLUCTUATION IN STORAGE-TEMPERATURE

The three-dimensional transient heat transfer phenomenon occurring in a rectangular brick-shaped frozen food when subjected to diverse funct ional forms of variation in the storage temperature is solved by compu ter simulation in order to analyse the behaviour of the thermal centre in comparison with that of the geometric centre, characterisation bei ng made through the evolution of two dimensionless parameters: the ini tial time when separation appears and the maximum temperature differen ce between both centres. Also, influences of product thermal propertie s (heat capacity and thermal conductivity) and convection due surface heat transfer coefficient are studied. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Sci ence Limited