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Don't know if I'm reading this chart correctly, but it shows cast iron with a higher number than stainless steel. Doesn't make sense.
 
Yes, I understand that.

Copper in the 400s
Aluminum in the 200s
Cast Iron 55
Stainless Steel 16

It's the last two that surprise me. I would have expected Stainless to have a higher TC than cast iron.
 
Oh, I see. No, stainless steel is a very bad conductor. Copper, though, is amazing. Just slightly under silver and better than gold. But it's heavy. Julia Child probably got a good workout with her all-copper pans, lol.
 
Considering all the discussions on cooking sites such as this one and others about how slow CI is to heat up, I find the numbers surprising. I don't think it's just a matter of thicker pan material.
 
What I am thinking about right now is the clean-up. I.e. whether the non-stick quality of cast iron and carbon steel is owrth the extra maintenance. Jury is out.
 
I thought SS would have a higher number than CI.

(Note: I'm not sure if what I wrote below is the best presentation of my thoughts)

Conductivity and thermal mass shouldn't be mutually exclusive. CI has a lot of thermal mass, so it holds heat well. But it also conducts heat well. Thinner SS doesn't have much thermal mass, which allows good control of heat (you can raise it and lower it quicker), but that doesn't mean it is a good conductor.

BTW, there are different grades of SS, and I think they have different conductivity. I think.

CD
 
As I recall from a materials class taken almost a half century ago, metals that are good electrical conductors are generally good thermal conductors.

If you look at thermal conductivity charts, cast iron is a better thermal conductor than stainless steel. Tri-ply SS has an aluminum core to improve thermal conductivity, as aluminum is a much better thermal conductor than SS. There are a lot of variables in thermal conductivity, though. 400 series stainless (the magnetic type) is a better thermal conductor than 300 series stainless. Thermal conductivity of iron is dependent upon the type of iron. Carbon steel is a better thermal conductor than stainless steel. Thermal conductivity varies with temperature. Here's another chart for those interested.

https://neutrium.net/heat_transfer/thermal-conductivity-of-metals-and-alloys/
 
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