Theoretical Model for Freezing of Food Gels with Temperature-depending Fraction of Frozen Water

Abstract

Weiner's model, originally presented for a multi-phase-transition problem for alloys, was applied to analyze the freezing of food gels in which the fraction of frozen water gradually changes with temperature. This model includes Neumann's model as its special case. The effect of the temperature-dependency of the fraction of frozen-water, measured by differential scanning calorimetry, was well incorporated into the theoretical model consideration. Theoretical predictions compared well with the experimental results. The advantages of this model are discussed compared with other theoretical models for freezing and thawing of food materials.