Microwave phase control heating

Food processors are increasingly looking towards new microwave-based technologies to deliver competitive advantage in the market place, reduce operational costs, allow greater product innovation and increase flexibility without the need for large capital investments. The technical barriers to the widespread exploitation of microwave heating, and opportunities for microwave heating in food processing, are discussed in the context of the need to understand the microwave field/material/process interaction. It is shown how a new application of interference techniques, called phase control microwave heating, may offer opportunities for enhanced heat transfer in food processing, especially for direct control of the spatial power deposition within a foodstuff. Simulations of phase control heating using a 3D FETD microwave model, validation of experimental findings and examples in other applications are presented.