Pawan Singh Takhar
Professor
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
University of Illinois at urbana champaign
United States of America
Biography
Dr. Pawan Takhar received B.Tech in Agricultural Engineering from Punjab Agricultural University, India in 1993, M.Engg. from Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand in 1996 and Ph.D. in Agricultural and Biological Engineering from Purdue University in 2002. Dr. Takhar has also worked as a software programmer for 2 years in India and as a design engineer for 1 year in Thailand where he was designing food processing machinery and heat transfer equipment. Before coming to University of Illinois, Dr. Takhar was working as an Associate Professor at Texas Tech University. He joined the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition in 2012 as an Associate Professor of Food and Biological Engineering.
Research Interest
Dr. Takhar uses porous media physics to study food and bioprocessing applications via mathematical modeling and experimental validation. He focuses on making further improvements in the multiscale hybrid mixture theory (HMT) with applications in swelling biopolymers. His research group has applied the theory for predicting fluid transport and stress-crack initiation in foods; performing macroscale and microstructural experiments (using NMR imaging, X-ray tomography and scanning electron microscopy) for obtaining further insight into transport mechanisms; solving unsaturated transport problems such as frying and starch expansion during extrusion; designing controlled release applications; and adapting the concepts from transport theories to work with food safety problems (fractional differential equations based new application in this field). Numerous bioprocesses such as drying, sorption, solvent transport, controlled release, conditioning, cooking, storage etc. can be addressed using his general approach on transport mechanisms. His team has also performed validation experiments on continuous and intermittent drying, and sorption to develop strategies for obtaining foods with reduced fractures and fried foods with lower fat content.
Publications
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Singh, P.P., J.H. Cushman, and D.E. Maier, Multiscale fluid transport theory for swelling biopolymers. Chemical Engineering Science, 2003. 58(11): p. 2409-2419.
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Singh, P.P., J.H. Cushman, and D.E. Maier, Three scale thermomechanical theory for swelling biopolymeric systems. Chemical Engineering Science, 2003. 58(17): p. 4017-4035.
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Singh, P.P., J.H. Cushman, L.S. Bennethum, and D.E. Maier, Thermomechanics of swelling biopolymeric systems. Transport in Porous Media, 2003. 53(1): p. 1-24.
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Singh, P.P., D.E. Maier, and O. Campanella, Effect of temperature and moisture on dynamic viscoelastic properties of soybeans. Transactions of the ASAE, 2001. 44(6): p. 1713-1719.
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Singh, P.P. and D.E. Maier, Transient Heat Conduction and Hotspot Development Prediction in a Flaking Roll with Revolving Heat Flux and Convection Boundary Conditions. Journal of American Oil Chemists Society, 2001. 78(8): p. 787-792.
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Singh, P.P., D.E. Maier, M.R. Okos, E. Cattanach, and K.P. Trumble, Effect of physical properties and operating parameters on soybean flaking. Journal of American Oil Chemists Society, 1999. 76(8): p. 981-987.
