Determination of the uncertainty for the thermal conductivity obtained as a function of the moisture content for several foodstuffs

摘要

Many times, when an experimental result is communicated, the uncertainty is omitted, particularly in the case in which the parameter of interest is determined by curve fitting. This article presents a review study to include an uncertainty to the parameter of interest, obtained by fitting of a straight line to an experimental data set, supposing that systematic errors can be neglected. This study is applied to the determination of expressions for the thermal conductivity of food products, supposing a constant mean temperature. In this case, in general, the thermal conductivity is a linear function of the moisture content (wb). Expressions of the thermal conductivity were obtained for several foodstuffs, according to the recommendation of the International Organization for Standardization. Thus, for a given moisture content, the obtained expressions enable to determine the value for the thermal conductivity, as well as its uncertainty, for a stipulated confidence limit.