THE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A MICROORGANISM and A LIQUID MEDIUM DURING MICROWAVE HEATING

One current explanation for research findings of enhanced microbial kill under microwave heating is that of selective absorption of microwave energy within the organism. In the present study, the temperature difference between a microorganism and its surrounding liquid medium were studied using well-established heat transfer principles. Results of the analysis show that because of the microscopic size of bacteria, the surface area to volume ratios of these organisms are extremely high, resulting in rapid heat loss to the surrounding environment. Thus the microorganisms have to possess extremely high dielectric loss factors to maintain even small temperature differences. the energy absorption difference required for a 1°C difference between microorganism and medium is presented for a range of conditions.