2nd post & addendum Explorecraft wrote:
"In order to check this I will rebuild the plates with an extra layer and rerun it tomorrow." You might want to consider checking the ceramic tile in a microwave (2.45 GHz) to see how it heats. I think the hotter it gets, the better it will work?? ........................................................................ http://www.smecc.org/litton_-_for_heat,_tune_to_915_or_2450_megacycles.htm "A Technical Discussion of Microwave Heating". "The power developed in the work by a microwave electromagnetic field is governed by the basic power equation: Pv = 1.41 E2 f Er tan d X 10-12 watts/in3 Where Pv = power dissipated in the work per unit volume in watts E = electric field strength in the work in volts per inch f = frequency in cycles per second Er = relative dielectric constant of the work tan d= loss tangent of the work" "The uniformity of energy transfer throughout the bulk of the work material is related to the dimensions of the work and the loss characteristics of the material. A standard way of reviewing this characteristic is to know the half power depth for a given material at a given frequency. The half power depth is that depth in the work where a molecule receives 1/2 of the energy that a molecule at the surface receives. Half power depth equation 3?o x = 8.686 p ?Er tan d Where ?o = wavelength in free space The amount of heat developed in the work material is a function of the intensity and frequency of the electromagnetic field and the electrical properties of the material. In general. tan S increases in proportion to the frequency. Consequently, power transfer occurs at the lowest field strength when the frequency is highest. However, generating very high frequency power for heating purposes is extremely costly and penetration difficulties are encountered. In microwave energy transfer for heating, the molecular characteristics of the work material are significant. Since the molecules are placed within an alternating field, they will exhibit a tendency to align themselves with the electric field generated by the microwaves particularly if they are dipolar. Each time the field reverses, the molecules tend to realign accordingly. The resulting inter-molecular friction acts to convert the electromagnetic energy to thermal energy. The nature of the electric dipole in the molecule and the rotation time of the molecule determine the magnitude of the loss tangent of the material. The loss tangent value and the dielectric constant value of any given material is a function of the frequency." ............................................................................. OTOH, I don't think substituting a slab of bacon for the tile is a good idea. :-) Frederick
