The effect of cooking container dimensions and mass on heat transfer rate in sous vide cooking

Abstract

This research investigates how different mass and dimensions of cooking containers affect the heat transfer rate in sous vide cooking; the key focus of the experiment is on the convective heat transfer process. Sous vide is a cooking method where food is vacuum-sealed and cooked in water at precise, low temperatures. The study is modeled by measuring the heat transfer rate to ground pork balls in five containers with different cross-sectional areas and mass. By applying Newton's Law of Cooling, along with the lumped capacitance method, the time constant for heat transfer is calculated; this calculation shows the correlation between the different container dimensions and mass and the rate of heat transfer. The measured time constants are verified by identifying the relationship between the specific heat capacity of the load and the heat transfer coefficient of the container in regards to the lumped capacitance method, deriving the constant values. While there are systematic errors and potential for deeper areas of research that have not been fully developed, this research contributes to holding a deeper understanding of heat transfer mechanisms in sous vide cooking; this is especially significant considering the lack of research and use of sous vide cooking compared to other conventional cooking methods despite the benefits and uniqueness it holds