Total heat transfer coefficients for canned foods during sterilization

An analytical mathematical model for determining the total heat transfer coefficient of a cylindrically shaped canned food subjected to sterilization was developed. There is a need to determine these coefficients in a simple and accurate form for process heat transfer analysis and energy optimization. In the mathematical modelling, a new technique for heat sterilization conduction problem was used by considering the boundary condition of the third kind in transient heat conduction. The temperature data at the centres of the cylindrically shaped cans were obtained in the experimental investigation at the medium temperatures of 115 and 121°C and were used to determine the total heat transfer coefficients of the individual canned products. The total heat transfer coefficient for an individual canned product increased with increasing medium temperature. The results of this study shows that the present analytical model is a simple tool for determining the total heat transfer coefficients for the individual canned products.