Freeze dryer (Christ) : drying product without heating, 18 L/24h, 10 heating plate of  1 L.

 

Principle :

1. Freezing of product
2. Primary desiccation (sublimation) : under vacuum, interstitial water contained in product changes from solid state (ice) to gas state
3. Secondary desiccation or final drying: under vacuum, this step allows to remove bound water, thus achieving residual humidity between 4% and 6%.

Two steps which play an important role in the quality of lyophilization process:

• Freezing : the aim is to lock water in the form of solid ice and not in form of small ice crystals;
• Vacuum: its quality is one of the most important part of lyophilization

 

Advantages :

• Preservation of organoleptic and nutritional quality in thermosensitive food products;
• Fast rehydration thanks to porous structure of powder;
• Preservation of biologic properties of molecules;
• Preservation of product until several years without modification;
• Require less place of storage.

 

Industrial applications :

• Organic products (protein, enzyme, microorganism….);
• Pharmaceutical and cosmetic products;
• Food products.