Richard W. Hartel, Ph.D., currently a Professor of Food Engineering, has been with the Department of Food Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1986. After receiving a Ph.D. degree in Agricultural and Chemical Engineering at Colorado State University, Dr. Hartel spent four years as a Research Chemical Engineer at Eastman Kodak, Co.
Dr. Hartel is the University of Wisconsin coordinator for the 2-week NCA-sponsored Resident Course on Candy Science and Technology. Besides teaching several food processing classes and a freshman career orientation course, he teaches an undergraduate elective course on Candy Science and Technology.
His research, in general, relates to understanding and controlling phase transitions in foods, including confections. Phase transitions in fats, sugars (and sugar alcohols), ice and salts are all areas of study. Specific projects include understanding and controlling bloom formation in chocolate and compound coating, developing a science-based approach to controlling sugar crystallization in confections, studying moisture uptake of sugar glasses, and understanding how ice crystals form in an ice cream freezer.