Conductivity is an important feature of cookware. It refers to the rate at which the cookware heats up, cools down, retains heat, and radiates heat. Heat radiation refers to how the heat spreads across the bottom of the pan and up the sides.
Certain materials used for making cookwares have lower thermal conductivity and so finishes are applied on the particular material to increase the thermal conductivity. A finish can be lined or coated on the material to give a final look that is more promising than the original metal cookware.
The color and texture of the finish also have some influence on cooking performance and speed. Dark-colored, rough textured cookware absorbs more radiant heat than highly polished cookware.
Emphasis on colorful kitchens has created a big market for colored cookwares and so several finishes are applied to make the cookware more usable, durable and more appealing in terms of display.
The most commonly used finishes include anodized, non stick, ceramic, clad, insulated, satin, porcelain etc.
- Anodized : Anodized is a layer of aluminum oxide electrochemmically applied to aluminum sheet.
- Ceramic : Ceramic is the object made of clay hardened into a relatively permanent material by firing. Ceramic is widely used as a finish or material for cookwares.
- Clad : Clad materials are formed through a cold rolling process, whereby two or more dissimilar metallic sheets are permanently joined together through a diffusion bonding process at sheet interfaces.
- Insulated : Insulated cookware is made of two layers of metal that are layered by a cushion of air.
- Lined Copper : Copper is one of the most expensive material used to make cookwares.
- Non Stick : Non stick is a coating applied to cookwares that prevents food from sticking and makes clean up easier.
- Porcelain : Porcelain enamel on metal has served the needs of mankind for centuries.
- Satin : Satin is a dull finish applied to the cookware by brushing.
- Silk Screen : Silk screen is a porcelain or acrylic paste forced through design on screen and baked on exterior surface by brushing.
- Sun Ray : Sunray is a finish applied on the interior of the metal cookware.