Freeze drying Subtitle © 2011 COMSOL. All rights reserved.
Freeze Drying Drying heat-sensitive substances to preserve taste Example: Coffee Preserve a perishable material Example: Blood plasma Make more convenient for transport Example: Astronaut food
Freeze Drying Phase diagram: Pressure vs. Temperature S = Solid Phase L = Liquid Phase G = Gas Phase Conventional drying (green) Freeze drying (blue) Supercritical drying (red). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Drying.svg
Freeze Drying Phase diagram: Pressure vs. Temperature Triple Point Critical Point Phase diagram: Pressure vs. Temperature S = Solid Phase L = Liquid Phase G = Gas Phase Conventional drying (green) Freeze drying (blue) Supercritical drying (red). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Drying.svg
Freeze Drying Freeze drying (blue) Triple Point Freeze drying (blue) Sublimation of an element or compound is a transition from solid phase to gas phase with no intermediate liquid stage http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Drying.svg
Freeze Drying Sublimation of water ice in a vial Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Heat conduction in both Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Diffusive transport of vapor in Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Thermodynamic equilibrium at ice-vapor interface. Vapor pressure above the solid follows an equilibrium law, for example. This constitutes the boundary condition at the surface for the mass transfer. Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying The interface is moving with time! Heat + Mass Balance at ice-vapor interface gives the velocity of the interface: Qs is discontinuity in heat conduction rate (due to latent heat of fusion) L is latent heat of sublimation Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Moving Mesh Needed The interface is moving with time! Heat + Mass Balance at ice-vapor interface gives the velocity of the interface: Qs is jump in heat flux L is latent heat of sublimation Vapor Domain Moving Mesh Needed Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Mass flux of vapor from Ice Domain to Vapor Domain: Mv =molecular weight of vapor Vapor Domain Ice Domain
Freeze Drying Uneven heating of the bottom tray
Ice-vapor interface is asymmetric due to uneven heating of the tray.