If you are interested in heat flux profiling of your industrial bakery oven, consider the innovative SCORPION® 2 Heat Flux Sensor from Reading Thermal, as well as our other state-of-the-art sensors and sensor arrays.
Reading Thermal, headquartered in Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania, has been researching, measuring, and understanding the commercial baking process for over 25 years.
We manufacture and support the SCORPION® 2 Data Logger that measures and maps the key baking parameters of temperature, air velocity, heat flux and humidity, and is now a standard in the baking industry.
What Our Profiling System Can Measure
Connecting smart sensors and sensor arrays to the SCORPION® 2 Data Logger and passing them through the oven with the product enables the measurement system to capture the four main baking parameters:
Heat Flux
Oven heat flux is the amount of energy transferred per unit area per unit time from or to a surface. It is the best indicator of oven performance during baking in terms of the product. Many bakers use oven heat flux profiles when trying to produce the same product on two different lines or when transferring product from one line to another. The two lines will produce the same product when the heat flux profiles match. The SCORPION® 2 Heat Flux Sensor is designed to measure convective and radiant heat fluxes at the product level and display the results in Btu/hr·ft2 or W/m2.
Humidity
Products passing through a thermal process interact with the moisture in the environment. The moisture often comes from the product itself and represents a delicate balance that affects finished product quality in many ways; e.g., the moisture remaining in a pretzel after baking can impact its shelf life; reducing evaporation can keep the surface of your cookies moist, allowing them to stretch without cracking. Bakeries worldwide rely on the SCORPION® 2 Humidity Sensor, which measures the absolute moisture content of the thermal environment in both heating and cooling processes.
Temperature
Oven temperature affects oven-spring, drying/dehydration, and color formation during baking. Insufficient or excessive temperature can also lead to undesirable changes in texture and taste. The Scorpion® 2 Temperature Sensor Array is designed to measure temperature at the product level, in fixed positions across the conveyor, and delivers a precise picture of temperatures from side-to-side and end-to-end.
Air Velocity
The airflow comes from the moving conveyor, the exhaust system, and natural combustion air currents in a radiant oven. In a convection oven, the airflow comes primarily from the air distribution plenums. Measuring the oven air velocity with the SCORPION® 2 Air Velocity Sensor is critical because airflow influences the final product’s coloration, texture, firmness, and baking time. The profiles will help you spot airflow differences between baking zones and unwanted air currents at the entrance or exit of the oven that results in inconsistent baking.
If you experience inconsistent product quality, moisture retention, or uneven baking in your commercial bakery oven, consider heat flux profiling with a state-of-the-art sensor from Reading Thermal and explore our other sensors and sensor arrays. Contact us online, or call our headquarters in Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania at (610) 678-5890 Ext. 2 to learn more.