CALCULATION of INITIAL FREEZING POINT, EFFECTIVE MOLECULAR WEIGHT and UNFREEZABLE WATER of FOOD MATERIALS FROM COMPOSITION and THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY DATA¹

Abstract

A procedure was developed for simultaneous determination of the effective molecular weight, unfreezable water, and initial freezing point of foods based on composition and thermal conductivity data. Freezing properties were determined by trial and error and optimized by minimizing the difference between calculated and reported values of thermal conductivity. the procedure involved determination of the ice fraction at several temperature levels. Corresponding thermal conductivity values at each temperature level were then calculated. Results showed that calculated values of effective molecular weight, unfreezable water, and initial freezing point for various types of meat and fish are comparable to those published. the parallel‐perpendicular model was found an excellent predictor of thermal conductivity of frozen meat and fish with muscle fibers oriented toward the direction of the heat flow.