Comparison of Induction Heating for Pans and Woks Using Planar Cooktops

In this paper, the heating performance of the pan-shaped and wok-shaped utensils on a same planar induction cooktop is analyzed and compared. Generally, the domestic induction cooker has a planar cooktop and adaptively heats pan-shaped utensils based on the magnetic induction mechanism. However, the shape of utensils are different in different cooking methods or cultures, specifically, the wok-shaped utensils are extremely popular in Asian countries. Therefore, the heating performance of the pan-shaped and wok-shaped utensils on a same planar induction cooktop should be considered and analyzed. This paper compares the thermal effect of the aforementioned utensils under the same planar cooktop theoretically and numerically. Abundant simulation results such as the magnetic flux density, eddy current distribution, Joule loss density and temperatures are given to validate the theoretical calculation. Finally, a possible solution is proposed to conquer the problem.