Feasibility Study & Embodiment Design of a More Efficient Frying Pan for Commercial Kitchens

Abstract

This design report discusses the embodiment design of a more efficient frying pan for gas powered stoves in commercial kitchens, to see if a potential market entry is feasible, viable and desirable. Conventional pans have a thermal efficiency of roughly 25%. This means that only 25% of the heat coming from the combusted gas is used for cooking. The rest - 75% - is not being absorbed by the pan and is wasted as heat to the kitchen environment.

In the beginning of 2022, a start-up called ‘NeoStove’ developed a proof-of-concept for a more efficient pan. It has proven that it is possible to double the thermal efficiency from 25% to 50%, at the cost of a higher product complexity. This increased complexity poses challenges in the domain of manufacturing, such as thin-walled fin structures to enlarge the effective surface area, as seen in heat sink configurations. A production process called high pressure die casting (HPDC) is used to achieve the required complexity and detailing that enable such a thermal efficient pan. The material used is an aluminium alloy, which is exceptionally suitable for the HPDC process. This process in combination with the alloy offers a set of benefits over a steel counterpart. First, aluminium is a metal with a high thermal conductivity that allows for excellent propagation of heat through the pan resulting in a beter heat distribution. Secondly, it is lightweight so it reduces physical strain on joints and ligaments of chefs, and results in a faster heat-up and cool-down time (Newton’s Law of Cooling). Thirdly, aluminium is relatively affordable and castable, which helps limiting production costs and puting a competitive product in the market.

From a user perspective, it is important to note that both the increased thermal efficiency and the added geometric complexity of the pan result in a slightly altered way of cooking. The design of a pan has remained more or less the same for thousands of years, so it might be difficult for a chef to adapt. The aim of the new design is to not hamper the workflow of the chef, but have it seamlessly integrated with their existing way of working. It is clear that a product manifesting itself in the harsh commercial kitchen environment requires a simple and robust setup, since physical abuse of kitchen equipment occurs on a regular basis. To illustrate, a typical frying pan with a synthetic non-stick coating has an average lifespan of 4 months among the restaurants interviewed in this study (n=27). The top three reasons for failure of a frying pan (end-of-life) are: 1) wearing-off non-stick coating, 2) warped base and 3) broken handle (-atachment). These challenges - amongst others - are tackled in this project with a set of design choices. First of all, the pan is hard anodized which results in an improved surface hardness and scratch resistance. Secondly, the fin geometry is designed in such a way that it improves thermal behaviour and structural integrity of the pan, preventing it from warping during thermal shock events and reduce the chance of damage from impact forces during drops. Lastly, the handle is issued with a three-point rivet atachment to the pan. This is the strongest analysed atachment technique that is seen on pans on the market, and it passes a 10 kg bending test.

The prototypes developed during this project have been pilot tested at 3 different restaurants and did not show any signs of wear during these multi-week trail periods. User inputs from the pilot tests are used to improve and iterate upon the design.