The Tribology of Eating Chocolate

The role of tribology in facilitating the move to sustainability does not just involve reducing friction and wear in industrial machinery and automobiles, but also is critical in gaining a better understanding of what we eat and what steps can be taken to improve the availability of healthier foods. This episode focuses on the topic of chocolate and research that is ongoing to better understand how this food is eaten and how tribology is used to better understand this process. A discussion is held with Dr. Siavash Soltanahmadi, Research Fellow at the University of Leeds (UK), who describes ongoing research trying to better understand the process of eating dark chocolate. When eating a piece of chocolate, an enjoyable sensation is felt due to the creamy feel of this food which provides a textural sensation. In discussing the eating of chocolate, a phase transfer takes place as the solid chocolate transitions into a molten fat phase followed by introduction of saliva, leading to the formation of an emulsion as digestion is initiated. Through a series of studies using a tongue-like surface, oral tribology is used to better understand the eating process. From this work, a multiscale tribology-informed smart design of chocolate is proposed that uses a gradient technology to retain the pleasurable eating sensation, but reduces the fat content of chocolate, leading to a healthier food.

Contributors: Dr. Neil Canter, STLE Advisor, Technical Programs and Services, Dr. Siavash Soltanahmadi, Research Fellow, University of Leeds, UK 

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