April 24, 2024, 02:23:15 AM
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Topic: Difference in heating method of induction stoves and microwave ovens  (Read 1930 times)

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Offline Darren

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An induction stove works by an alternating electric current, that creates an oscillating magnetic field, which induces an alternating magnetic flux in the metal of cookware, and by eddy currents and resistance of the pan, heat food.
Microwave ovens work by generating an alternating magnetic field from the magnetron, which causes an alternating polarisation direction in molecules of water in food, generating more kinetic energy and resulting in heat produced from the water in food.
If microwave ovens can heat water in food directly from EM waves, and alternating electric currents can also produce magnetic waves, wouldnt the food cooked by induction stoves be also cooked by radiation like that of a microwave?

Offline Borek

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Compare frequencies used.
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Offline Enthalpy

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Several usual explanations are inaccurate.

Pans on inductions stoves use to heat through hysteresis losses more than eddy currents.

Any lossy material heats in a microwave oven, not only water. And while I'm at debugging, solids and liquids use to show no resonance at few GHz.

Then, the metallic pan is heated by the induction stove; if you put the pan in a microwave oven, you get sparks, so it's unsuited.

Would a ferromagnetic pan heat if the user kept the oven operating despite the sparks? Not well. A quick estimate with ยต~3000 gives a skin depth of 36nm and a square resistance of 1ohm, mismatched with the vacuum impedance of 377ohm. Most power would go in the sparks.

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