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5.Alternatemethodsofdrying
5.1Vacuumdrying
Thedifferencebetweenvacuumfreezedryingandvacuumdryingis,inreality,amatterofpumps.Ina
freezedry system the pump has the capacity to pull a vacuum of 4mm Hg and less at temperatures
below0C(32F)waterasasolid(ice)can,undercertainconditionsofpressureandtemperature,pees
to water as a vapor (sublimation). On the other hand, in vacuumdrying the pump has the capacity of
pullingavacuumof5mmHgandaboveattemperaturesgreaterthanOCwaterasaliquidpassesto
waterasavapor(evaporation).Agraphicrepresentationofthisphenomenoncanbeseenifanimaginary
lineisdrawninFigure1torepresentthelevelsofpressuresandtemperaturescited.
Aswehaveseen,theboilingpointofwaterasaliquidcanbelowerediftheairpressureisdecreased.
Thereducedboilingpointatlowpressurefindsconsiderablepracticalapplicationinthefieldofvacuum
evaporation (evaporation under low pressure). This process is of primary importance in the auger
industry. Boiling off the water from the syrup at normal atmospheric pressure would char the sugar.
However,thepressureiskeptsolowthatthewatermayberemovedatratherlowtemperatures.
Intheaerospaceindustry,thermalvacuumchambersareusedtotestthebehaviorofspacecraftsuchas
weather satellites under simulated space conditions. Such chambers, rather large in capacity, are very
effectivefordryinglargequantitiesofwetted(notfrozen)archivalmaterials.Inonesuchchamberthere
isapurgedairsystem,amethodwherevacuumpressureat45mmHgisappliedforaboutoneandahalf
hours. Then the chamber is purged with dry air of less than 1 percent humidity the air passes over
heatersatatemperatureof60C(140F).Thisoperationcontinuesforabouttwoandahalfdaysthenthe
vacuum is applied again. The cycle lasts for about five days. Steam injection is used to eliminate
evaporationfromthewettedmaterials(15).Othermethodsofeliminatingortrappingareavailable,for
example,throughtheuseofrefrigeratedcondensers.
5.2Deepfreezedrying
Thereisconsiderableconfusionovertheuseofterminologytodescribethemethodsavailablefordrying
wetted archival and library materials. Therefore, at this point, it may be useful to review the terms
normallyused.
Vacuum freezedrying is the process for drying frozen materials by sublimation at low pressure (high
vacuum)andattemperaturesbelowthefreezingpoint.Possiblyalessconfusingtermtodescribevacuum
freezedryingisthesingleword"lyophilization."BothtermsareinterchangeableintheEnglishlanguage
although the former is more in use. However, in other languages, French and Spanish, for example,
lyophilizationisthepreferredwordtechnicaldictionariesgiveitaclear,concisemeaning:rapidfreezing
ofamaterialataverylowtemperaturefollowedbyrapiddehydrationbysublimationinahighvacuum.
Vacuumdrying is the process used to dry wetted (nonfrozen) materials by evaporation in a vacuum
chamberatrelativelyhigherpressures(lowvacuum)andattemperaturesabovethefreezingpoint.
Deep freeze drying requires only a freezer. It is a nonvacuum process which has been described by
several names: simply freezedrying, ambient freezedrying, cold storage drying, nonvacuum drying.
Thedeepfreezemethoddriesasolidbydehydration.Thesamelawsofphysicsthatgovernsublimation
applyherealso.Theprocessisquitefamiliartothosewhohaveplacedunwrappedfoodinthefreezer
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compartment of a domestic refrigerator. Over a period of time the food becomes dehydrated it froze,
acquired a vapor pressure higher than the point of coldest temperature (freezing unit), its water vapor
moleculesweredrawntothefreezerunitandtrappedthere.
Deep freeze as a method of drying is relatively wellknown and has bees used by a number of
conservatorsinthepast.However,thetechniquehasnotcaughtonperhapsbecauseofthetimerequired
todehydratethefrozenmaterials.Butinarecentlypublishedarticle,Smith(16)describestheuseofa
commercial upright freezer which was modified to dry 200 to 300 wetted books in two to four weeks
(anditcanalsobeusedtoexterminateinsectsinbooks).Themodelisselfcontained,hasaverticalglass
door freezer, and was chosen for availability of maintenance centers internationally, and its ability to
cope adequately with minor disasters in libraries. The modification include the establishment of a
temperaturedifferentialbetweenbookcompartmentandtheevaporator(freezingunit),theeliminationof
unnecessary heat sources, installation of temperature controls, indicating thermocouple, signal devices
andtimers.
5.3Naturalfreezedrying
Naturalfreezedryingismentionedbrieflyasamatterofinterestandtoavoidconfusionwiththeother
methods in use for drying. It is a technique for a specific purpose and is limited to those parts of the
worldwhere winter climates prevail et temperaturesbelowfreezing.Notehowsimilaritistotheother
methodsalreadydescribed.
Gratten and McCawley (17) write of the method they call it "exterior freezedrying'. in which
waterlogged wood is freezedried without the need of a vacuum chamber. They take advantage of
Canadianwinter:thelowtemperature,thedailyhoursofsunshinetooffsetthelatentheatofsublimation,
and the wind conditions to help remove the watersaturated air from the frozen object. A tentlike
housing with polyethylene walls protects the object undergoing treatment from undesired exterior
conditions.
Conceivably, frozen documents and books could be dried under the same conditions as waterlogged
wood.Theprocesswouldbequiteslow,butitwouldstillbeaformoffreezedrying"aunature!."
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