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R. Richard

Literotica Guru
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I read the article in a newspaper and made the comment, "Saucy." They apparently didn't like the comment.(???) I didn't even point out the misspelling of aluminum, in the article. Ah well.

How a rocket scientist from Oxford University has reinvented the saucepan

Dr Thomas Povey from Oxford University spent three years developing the new pan that channels heat from the bottom up the sides so that food is warmed much more quickly

A new Flare pan that uses up to 40% less energy than its conventional equivalent and is about to go on sale

Cooking might not be rocket science, but it has taken a rocket scientist from Oxford University to reinvent the humble saucepan.

Dr Thomas Povey, who usually works designing cooling systems for jet engines, has come up with a new pan which heats up more quickly, cooks food faster and uses 40 per cent less energy.

Dr Povey, who is a keen mountaineer, decided to tackle the problem after struggling to heat up water at altitude.

He realised that a large amount of energy is lost simply heating the pan, rather than boiling the water.

“The original idea was for the outdoor market - we wanted to improve efficiency for cooking outside,” said Dr Povey.

"But we realised it was problem that applies to the domestic market. So we worked from there."

The cast aluminium pans channels built into the side to allow heat from the bottom to travels up the sides so that food is warmed quickly from all the way around.

An equivalent pan of conventional design was shown to need 40 per cent more energy to heat up than the new ‘Flare Pan.’

"There's nothing wrong with (a usual saucepan), but it loses a lot of heat, which means it has less energy efficiency, which means it wastes more heat, energy, and gas,” said Dr Povey.

"For instance if you were boiling pasta you may think it takes a long while to get the water boiling, but you would see a significant time improvement with this new pan and it would cook quicker.

"We've done a number of test kitchens and the chefs seem to like it, mainly down to the even heat distribution. But that is down to the good casting of the pan, as well as the product."

The pans, which were launched yesterday, are sold through Lakeland.

Dr Povey specializes in the designing of cooling systems for parts of jet and rocket engines that reach very high temperatures.

He added: "The problem with the current shape of the pan means a lot of the heat is dissipated into the air.

"So, it is an aero-dynamic and heat transfer problem and we applied the science used in rocket and jet engines to create a shape of a pan that is more energy efficient.

"So, it is a very similar problem but it certainly is a different product than what we're used to working on." .

Even before their official launch, Flare pans have already become an award winning product.

The Worshipful Company of Engineers, a Livery Company of the City of London operating under Royal Charter, has awarded Dr Povey their '2014 Hawley Award' for "the most outstanding Engineering Innovation that delivers demonstrable benefit to the environment."

Matthew Canwell, Lakeland's Buying Director added: "People are becoming more energy conscience. This pan is energy efficient, it cooks quicker, and it saves gas and energy. So it ticks all the boxes really."

“We're always looking for new innovations that will save our customers both time and money.”
 
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I think that's the way the Brits are supposed to spell aluminum. They even say it differently.
 
Yes, we spell it ALUMINIUM.
and pronounce it thus:-
AL - YOU - MIN - EEUM.

But as you might think, the new pan is not cheap and I fear it may be a while before the savings garnered in the gas/electric Bill has paid for the pan. See here.

Yes, folks that £65 worth of cooking pan: Call it $112 !


PS. From the Oxford Talking Dictionary:

aluminium
A n. A light silvery ductile and malleable metal, not readily tarnished by air, which is a chemical element, atomic no. 13. (Symbol Al.)
B attrib. or as adj. Of aluminium; made with or containing aluminium.
aluminize /ljumnz/ v.t. coat with aluminium.


---------------------------------------------------------
Excerpted from Oxford Talking Dictionary
Copyright © 1998 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
 
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Weird Comment

One commenter wrote, ""You'd be a better writer if you didn't try so hard." Should we all stop trying, so we'll be better writers?
 
You can do some really bad writing by trying too hard, yes.
 
The perfesser's basic premise is all wrong. Water boils sooner at high altitude and low atmospheric pressure.
 
The perfesser's basic premise is all wrong. Water boils sooner at high altitude and low atmospheric pressure.

Slight Correction...

Water boils at a lower temperature at higher altitude.

How soon it boils depends on how much energy can be transferred into the water in a given amount of time.
 
The perfesser's basic premise is all wrong. Water boils sooner at high altitude and low atmospheric pressure.

Well, water boils at a lower temperature at high altitude, true. But if you want to cook something in that water it takes longer. Because it's at a lower temperature.
 
Well, water boils at a lower temperature at high altitude, true. But if you want to cook something in that water it takes longer. Because it's at a lower temperature.

True...

I've been places where it takes more than two hours to boil a potato because the boiling point of water at that altitude is so low. If one wants boiled taters at that altitude they need to be cut into really small pieces.
 
If one wants boiled taters at that altitude they need to be cut into really small pieces.

If you disagree with boiling potatoes at high altitude, that's fine. However, the punishment for doing so is way out of line. Wait! You're talking about cutting the POTATOES into really small pieces.
 
If you disagree with boiling potatoes at high altitude, that's fine. However, the punishment for doing so is way out of line. Wait! You're talking about cutting the POTATOES into really small pieces.

Yeah, that's what I get for pounding out a fast reply on AH.

Well played!!
 
Yes, that was rather well played.

(However the OP still is a violation of copyright and of Forum rule #3, and the Web site hasn't cut it down to acceptable size yet. The link could have legitimately been provided, as I did subsequently.)
 
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