SINGLE KERNEL TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT

ABSTRACT Techniques were investigated for rapid, non-destructive measurement of the temperature of individual grain kernels. Single kernel temperature is of interest for materials property research, including moisture measurement where a correlation exists with temperature rise during microwave heating. Slightly modified, commercial miniature thermocouples, infrared, and fluoroptic temperature measurement devices were tested on grains (com, peanut, and sunflower) representing a range in size, shape, surface irregularity, intemal non-homogeneity, and moisture contents. Miniature thermocouple and fluoroptic probes were found not well suited to single kernel temperature measurement because of their relatively large mass, slow response time, and the difficulty of achieving adequate surface contact. The infrared sensor had good accuracy, negligible effect on the sample, and short response time. KEYWORDS. Temperature measurement. Grain, Single kemel measurement. Sensors.