To all, I do not know if this is the correct forum to be posting on but I need help. I am looking for a scientific publication, equation, or chart that would help me define ambient thawing process.
In a perfect world I would like to be able to calculate the time of thermal transfer (to thaw) by taking the weight and density of the product, the starting temperature of the product and the ambient temperature of the air and come up with a "how many degrees did it warm up per hour" result.
I am not a wizard when it come to creating equations, and so I have been searching high and low for some kind of way to support this program. I know that when I pull product out of a -15 degree freezer that it is not going to be in the temperature danger zone for at least 4-6 hours, and I would like to be able to defend that we do not need to monitor the temperature of the product every hour for the initial period. I also want to be able to calculate how long it should take before the product is thawed, that way I can correctly stage and manage inventory and labor to execute this project.
In an ideal scenario we would thaw this product under refrigeration, but my facility is looking at moving millions of pound of product, and we do not have the refrigeration space to be able to execute.
thank you all in advance for any guidance that you can give me.