dukas Senior Member Joined: 21 Oct 2012 Posts: 9 Location: Florida Expertise: Just starting
Posted Thu Oct 25, 2012, 11:03am Subject: 1 does not equal 1
Common sense tells me that one level scoop of beans should yield *less* than one level scoop of ground coffee, since some of the fine grounds occupy the space that existed *between* the original beans. However, I find that the ground coffee is *more* than one level scoop. Do the bean fragments *expand* from being ground?
Posted Thu Oct 25, 2012, 11:50am Subject: Re: 1 does not equal 1
It's down to the packing fraction of the beans vs the packing fraction of the grounds.
Beans are smooth, and slide past each other to pack fairly densely. Grounds have sharp edges and don't slide past each other, unless a force is put on them (tamping) or they are shaken to settle the down. Thus the packing fraction of undisturbed grounds is less than that of beans. Once you are dealing with volumes around 5-10 times the size of the particle (beans or grounds) or larger the packing fraction has a bigger effect than the size of the particles on the volume occupied.
Posted Thu Oct 25, 2012, 12:51pm Subject: Re: 1 does not equal 1
While it does not make a lot of sense, I have found that one (Aeropress) scoop of beans roughly equals a scoop of ground coffee.
Similarly, when I grind walnuts for my wife (using a coarse kitchen grinder-thing) ...when I grind one cup of walnut halves I get roughly a cup of pieces.
Really, does everything have to make sense?
With my Aeropress, one slightly rounded scoop of beans gives me a consistent good cup.
However, with my Krups Moka Brew I wouldn't dare try that. There, +/- 5 grams can make a big difference. So I weigh 45g of beans for 1 litre of water.
The answer to the OP's question is: It depends on ...where.
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