20 1.

Size, Shape, Volume, and Related Physical Attributes

reached between three consecutive measurements. The volume of the sample is calculated as follows:
Wseeds = Wtotal − Wsample − Wcontainer (1.38)
Wseeds
Vseeds = (1.39)
ρseeds
Vsample = Vcontainer − Vseeds (1.40)

where
W = weight (kg),
V = volume (m3 ),
ρ = density (kg/m3 ).

1.4.4 Expressions of Volume

Volume can be expressed in different forms. The form of the volume must be well defined before
the data are presented. The most commonly used definitions are:

Solid volume (Vs ) is the volume of the solid material (including water) excluding any interior
pores that are filled with air. It can be determined by the gas displacement method in which the
gas is capable of penetrating all open pores up to the diameter of the gas molecule.
Apparent volume (Vapp ) is the volume of a substance including all pores within the material (in-
ternal pores). Apparent volume of regular geometries can be calculated using the characteristic
dimensions. Apparent volume of irregularly shaped samples may be determined by solid or
liquid displacement methods.
Bulk volume (Vbulk ) is the volume of a material when packed or stacked in bulk. It includes all
the pores enclosed within the material (internal pores) and also the void volume outside the
boundary of individual particles when stacked in bulk (external pores).

For baked products, especially for cakes, sometimes an index of volume based on the dimensions
of the cake is used (Cloke, Davis, & Gordon, 1984). In this method, the cake is cut into two halves.
A template is used to measure height from different positions of the cross section (Fig. 1.10). Volume
index determined by the AACC template method is based on the sum of height at different positions
(AACC, 1983).
Volume index = B + C + D (1.41)
The bottom diameter (A to E) was also measured and subtracted from the diameter of the baking
pan to obtain shrinkage value. Uniformity, which is a measurement of cake symmetry, is found through
subtraction of the two midpoint measurements:
Uniformity = B − D (1.42)

1.5 DENSITY

Quality of food materials can be assessed by measuring their densities. Density data of foods
are required in separation processes, such as centrifugation and sedimentation and in pneumatic and
hydraulic transport of powders and particulates. In addition, measuring the density of liquid is required
to determine the power required for pumping.
 1.5 Density 21

A B C D E

Figure 1.10 Schematic cross-sectional tracing of a cake where, C is height at center and B and D are heights
at three fifths of distance from center to edge.

Density can be calculated after measuring the mass and volume of the object because it is defined
as the mass per unit volume. In the SI system, the unit of density is kg/m3 .
In most of the engineering problems, solids and liquids are assumed to be incompressible, that is, the
density is hardly affected by moderate changes in temperature and pressure. Gases are compressible
and their densities are affected by changes in temperature and pressure. The densities of gases decrease
as temperature increases whereas they increase with increase in pressure. Under moderate conditions,
most gases obey the ideal gas law. Molecular weight of any gas in kg (1 kg-mole) occupies 22.4 m3
at 273 K and 1 atm. For example, density of air can be calculated from:
29 kg/kgmole
ρair = (1.43)
22.4 m3 /kgmole
The density of liquids can be determined by using a pycnometer. Wide-mouthed bottles can be used
for very viscous materials such as tomato paste, batter, or honey.
Liquid density can also be measured by placing a hydrometer in a beaker filled with the liquid
sample (Fig. 1.11). The hydrometer has a stem that extends from a tubular shaped bulb. The diameter
of the stem is approximately equal to the diameter of thermometer. The bulb may be filled with a
dense material to give it an appropriate weight so that the whole hydrometer sinks in the test liquid to
such a depth that the upper calibrated and marked stem is partly above the liquid. The depth to which
the hydrometer sinks depends on the density of the fluid displaced. The deeper the hydrometer sinks,
the lower the density of the solution. The constant weight hydrometer works on the principle that a
floating body displaces its own weight of fluid.
The density of liquid is calculated from the ratio of weight of the hydrometer to the volume of the
displaced liquid:
W
ρ1 = (1.44)
AX + V

where

W = weight of hydrometer (kg),

A = cross-sectional area of stem (m2 ),
X = the length of the stem immersed (m),
V = Volume of the bulb (m3 ).
22 1. Size, Shape, Volume, and Related Physical Attributes

Figure 1.11 Hydrometer.

Density hydrometers are sometimes prepared for a narrow range of measurement and therefore are
sensitive to small changes in density. Specific names are given to these kinds of hydrometers such as lac-
tometers for milk and oleometers for oil. The Twaddell hydrometer is used for liquids denser than water.
The Baume scale has two scales, one of which is for fluids heavier than water and the other one is for
lighter fluids. A variety of hydrometers are also available for specific purposes other than density such
as brix saccharometers for percentage of sucrose by weight in a solution, alcoholometers for percentage
of alcohol by volume, and salometers for determination of the percent saturation of salt solutions.
The density of solids can be calculated from their measured weight and volume. Volume measure-
ment methods have been discussed in Section 1.4.
Density can be expressed in different forms. For example, for particulate materials such as grains, one
may be interested in the density of individual particles or the density of the bulk of the material which
includes the void volume. In literature, the definitions of densities differ form each other. Therefore,
the form of the density must be well defined before presenting the data. The most commonly used
definitions are:
True density (ρ T ) is the density of a pure substance or a composite material calculated from the
densities of its components considering conservation of mass and volume. If the densities and volume
or mass fractions of constituents are known, density can be determined from:

n
1
ρT = X iv ρi =  (1.45)

n
i=1 X iw ρi
i=1
 1.5 Density 23

where
ρi = density of ith component (kg/m3 ),
X iv = volume fraction of ith component,
X iw = mass fraction of ith component,
n = number of components.
Solid density (ρs ) is the density of the solid material (including water), excluding any interior pores
that are filled with air. It can be calculated by dividing the sample weight by solid volume determined
by the gas displacement method in which gas is capable of penetrating all open pores up to the diameter
of the gas molecule.
Material (substance) density (ρm ) is the density of a material measured when the material has been
broken into pieces small enough to be sure that no closed pores remain.
Particle density (ρ p ) is the density of a particle that has not been structurally modified. It includes
the volume of all closed pores but not the externally connected ones. It can be calculated by dividing
the sample weight by particle volume determined by a gas pycnometer.
Apparent density (ρapp ) is the density of a substance including all pores within the material (internal
pores). Apparent density of regular geometries can be determined from the volume calculated using
the characteristic dimensions and mass measured. Apparent density of irregularly shaped samples may
be determined by solid or liquid displacement methods.
Bulk density (ρbulk ) is the density of a material when packed or stacked in bulk. Bulk density of
particulate solids is measured by allowing the sample to pour into a container of known dimensions.
Special care should be taken since the method of filling and the container dimensions can affect the
measurement. It depends on the solid density, geometry, size, surface properties, and the method of
measurement. It can be calculated by dividing the sample weight by bulk volume.
The density of food materials depends on temperature and the temperature dependence of densities of
major food components [pure water, carbohydrate (CHO), protein, fat, ash and ice] has been presented
by Choi and Okos (1986) as follows:
ρwater = 997.18 + 3.1439 × 10−3 T − 3.7574 × 10−3 T 2 (1.46)
ρCHO = 1599.1 − 0.31046T (1.47)
ρprotein = 1330 − 0.5184T (1.48)
ρfat = 925.59 − 0.41757T (1.49)
ρash = 2423.8 − 0.28063T (1.50)
ρice = 916.89 − 0.1307T (1.51)
where densities (ρ) are in kg/m and temperatures (T ) are in C and varies between −40 and 150◦ C.
3 ◦

Example 1.4. Calculate the true density of spinach at 20◦ C having the composition given in Table
E.1.4.1.

Solution:
Using the temperature dependent density equations (1.46–1.50), densities of components at 20◦ C
are calculated and given in Table E.1.4.2.
Taking the total mass of the spinach as 100 g, the mass fraction of each component in spinach is
found and shown in Table E.1.4.2.