How Does Heat Transfer Work?

Science and coffee — together at last!

While you may think these are two completely unrelated topics — one was the subject you didn’t like in school and the other is the only way you get through each day — they are actually directly correlated.

Science is how your coffee gets created — largely through the process of filtration (not to mention the natural process in which the coffee beans are grown), and the way that heat of the beverage is maintained and lost.

With the LEXO, you don’t have to worry so much about the latter. That’s because our innovative smart mug utilizes phase change material and an advanced heat transfer system which cools your coffee to the perfect drinking temperature in a matter of minutes, and then keeps it there for hours on end.

That’s right. We’ve found a solution to the problem that has plagued coffee drinkers for far too long: the problem of scalding hot coffee and burnt tongues. And by the way, as a result we also solved the issue of having to reheat coffee in the microwave.

Is this sorcery? How is this possible?

Through science! Keep reading to learn how heat transfer works, specifically when it comes to the LEXO, and order your very own smart mug today.

How Does Heat Travel?

In order to understand the heat transfer process in the LEXO, we first need to have a quick primer on heat in general. There are three primary ways in which heat travels — whether it be through a room or through a coffee mug.

These three ways are: conduction, convection, and radiation.

• Conduction: One of heat’s most common properties is its tendency to move from a higher to a lower temperature whenever possible. This is one of the main ways in which heat travels, through a process known as conduction. Conduction occurs when one object comes into contact with another (or several), with each object having a different temperature. As the heat flows to the cooler object, the temperature eventually becomes consistent as the molecules in the cooler object are heated and move quicker. A good example is when a spoon is placed into a hot mug of coffee. Eventually, the hot coffee will warm up the metal spoon through conduction. 
• Convection: Typically, gases and liquids are able to transfer heat efficiently through a method known as convection. This is the scientific word for the process in which heat energy flows from an area of high heat to an area of cooler temperatures. Remember the phrase “heat rises”? That’s what the general principle of convection is all about. 
• Radiation: Heat can also be transferred through radiation, a process which doesn’t require any matter to act as the catalyst for the movement of higher temperatures. In this process, heat is transferred through waves which are emitted from a central source. Think about the sun; we can feel its heat even though we are (relatively) nowhere close. That’s radiation! 

So how do these heat transfer principles apply to drinking coffee? Allow us to provide some tasty, refreshing education about heat transfer and the perfectly hot cup of coffee achieved with the LEXO.

Heat Transfer In Coffee

Think about the heat of your coffee as it’s prepared. Extremely high temperatures, often exceeding 200 degrees, are required in order to brew this amazing substance. However, this also brings about an unfortunate consequence: that coffee is far too hot to drink right away.

As it emits heat into the air (radiation) and heats your typical ceramic or stainless steel coffee mug (convection/conduction), there’s no way you could take a sip without burning your mouth — until now.

The LEXO is the world’s first smart mug which harnesses the power of science in order to solve this problem forever. Our smart coffee mugs contain bio-based phase change material which aid with heat transfer and cool your coffee down to the perfect drinking temperature in minutes and holds it there for hours.

Here’s how heat transfer works in the LEXO:

• Pour: As soon as you pour scalding coffee into the LEXO, the heat transfer process gets underway. The phase change material we mentioned above is located within the LEXO’s walls and immediately absorbs the initial heat blast from the liquid. As it absorbs this heat, the phase change material “melts” from a solid to a liquid, keeping the initial blast as latent heat energy which will be used later. 
• Drink: In a matter of minutes, the phase change process is complete. The material then releases that latent heat energy back into the beverage steadily throughout the day as it returns to its solid form — ensuring no heat is lost, but rather transferred through convection back into the coffee.
• Enjoy: That means your coffee is keps at the perfect drinking temperature, which studies have shown to be somewhere around 140 degrees. No advanced gadgets are required for this process. Just all-natural heat transfer! 

Are you ready to experience the marriage between science and coffee? Then buy a LEXO smart mug today and see why this is not your standard tumbler.