Measuring the Flow and Recovery of Ketchup with the MCR 72

The way ketchup levels out on your french fries can be described by its thixotropic behavior (structure recovery). A method for determining the thixotropic behavior is presented here.

Introduction

Why We Measure Ketchup with a Rheometer

Enjoyers of french fries around the world have very specific expectations of the perfect consistency of ketchup. Some people expect it to have a solid structure, so that it stays on top of the fries, while others want the ketchup to flow more freely so that it gets distributed all over the fries. With a rheometer such as the MCR 72 we can measure this behavior and fine-tune the ketchup so that it meets specific customer needs.

Thixotropic Behavior

The term thixotropy consists of the Greek words "thixis" (touch) and "trepein" (to turn). It means change or transition due to mechanical load.

For ketchup lovers, thixotropy is an important term, because it describes what happens to the sauce after it is poured onto french fries. Good thixotropy means that, immediately after pouring the ketchup, the initial structure is regenerated. Such structural regeneration ensures that not too much material drips out of the bottle neck. Thixotropy is often a decisive criterion for the end user when evaluating a product positively or negatively.

In this report, two ketchup samples were evaluated in terms of their thixotropic behavior.

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