Stress–dielectric relationships in Nutella

Abstract Dielectrostriction is a rheodielectric phenomenon that describes the variation of dielectric properties of a material with deformation and is a fundamental property of any dielectric material. During the study of the dielectrostriction phenomenon in polymers, it was found that under small deformations a linear relationship exists between the change in dielectric constant and the stress. Like polymers, most foods are dielectric materials; hence, a change in their dielectric properties with deformation can be expected as well. In this study, the dielectrostriction effect was investigated in food for the first time. Nutella was chosen for this study. It has been found that a linear stress–dielectric relationship exists in Nutella during shear flow. The potential applications of the stress–dielectric relationship in food rheology and processing control are discussed.