* * * INSIGHT * * *

Selecting The Right Pressure For Primary Drying

By

Thomas A. Jennings, Ph.D.

When developing a drying process, the individual will sooner or later be faced with the question, what pressure do I use.  For those just entering the field, the first logical step would be to do a literature search. This can often lead to more confusion than answers for the reseacher may well find processes that were performed at pressures greater than 1000 mTorr or perhaps at that catch all pressure of full vacuum - whatever that means. Nevertheless, the time and effort that they spend pouring through the literature often ends in frustration and more confusion. It seems such a simple question, what pressure do I use during primary drying and yet there does not seem to be any general consensus. Worse yet, whom should they believe for all of the authors seem to report successful drying processes. I must admit I must agree with our researcher for I have yet to read a paper describing a drying process, in great detail,  in which the final product was a complete failure. No doubt that such paper would draw a great deal of attention especially when the author has attached his resume.

So it is the intent of this INSIGHT to offer some assistance to our researcher friend by considering how one goes about selecting the right chamber pressure for the primary drying process. But since this is holiday time in our hemisphere, let me take a break from the usual boring writing style that typifies technical papers and once again call upon the zany services of our dear friends at the Surcure Company that we met in previous INSIGHTs.  (see INSIGHTs Vol.1 no. 8, Vol. 2 no. 3,  Vol. 2 no. 5, Vol. 2 no. 7, Vol. 2 no. 9, Vol. 2 no. 11, Vol. 3 no. 1, Vol. 3 no. 3, Vol. 3 no. 5, Vol. 3 no. 7 and Vol. 3 no. 10.) I certainly hope that our friends at Surcure will either help and maybe even amuse our researcher.

Volume 5 No. 8                                                                                       August 2002

7 Pages          1 References           0 Figures

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