Thermal Profiling

Temperature profiling is the process of recording and interpreting temperatures of products as they move through either a conveyorized or batch heating process (typically an oven or furnace). The collected numeric data is converted by temperature analysis software into meaningful information and displayed as a graph – thermal profile.

Heat treatment involves the use of heating or chilling to achieve a desired result, such as hardening or softening of a material. For aerospace and automotive heat treatment, the temperature tolerance of a furnace is assessed by undertaking a Temperature Uniformity Survey (TUS), which is essential for CQI-9 and AMS 2750 quality control standards.

When coatings are applied, for aesthetic or functional reasons, to a manufactured product a critical step is that of curing the coating. In either a batch or continuous oven the requirement is to raise the product mass and its coating material to a specified temperature and hold this temperature for a set time. Typical process times are designed to achieve 25 to 35 minutes at the threshold temperature to ensure a minimum time at the curing temperature of 20 minutes.

The benefits of cooking food are well documented to include among others, improved flavor, palatability, texture, shelf life and more recently reduced preparation time in the home. Food processors worldwide increasingly focus on the supply of ready cooked products in order to add value to the product and so maximize market appeal.

Thermal processing serves a broad range of industries and is fundamental to the performance, quality and safety of a wide range of products.

The thermocouple is one of the least complex of all sensors and as such it can be both rugged and low cost making it ideally suited for use in industrial applications.

Glossary of the most common terms used within the thermal profiling process.

Temperature profiling is the term used to describe the process of recording and interpreting the temperatures of products and/or air through a conveyorized heat-treating process. Temperature data is measured continuously using thermocouples connected directly to the product(s) at different locations as it travels through the oven or furnace.