Thermal properties of potatoes and a computer simulation model of a blanching process

Abstract
Thermal conductivity and specific heat were experimentally determined in Bintje potatoes. The methods used were a transient hot‐strip method and differential scanning calorimetry respectively. The results from the experiments were used in a theoretical calculation model using the finite element technique. Temperature profiles and heat transfer coefficients were simulated and the theoretical calculations were compared with experimental data for the blanching process. The correlation between experi‐mental data and theoretical calculations was good if the heat transfer coefficient was assumed to be 750 W/m2°C.