MICROWAVE HEATING

BY:
AMIT SINGH
 INTRODUCTION
 MW heating refers to use of non-ionizing electromagnetic
waves of certain frequencies to generate heat in material.

 The speed with which heating takes place contributes to

most to its rapid growth
 Interaction of electromagnetic fields with materials

Food, oil,
water, wood
Absorption

Belts, trays,
Transmission dishes

Reflection
Applicators
waveguides
 MECHANISM
• Microwave is comprised of electric and
magnetic fields oriented perpendicularly
• Due to electric field component in microwaves
the polarization in dielectric material takes
place.
MECHANISM CONT……
 DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES
•  Intrinsic electrical properties that affect behavior
of foods with EM fields:
• ε’ - The relative dielectric constant
• ε” - The dielectric loss factor
• ε”= ε’ Tan δ
• Tan δ is the phase shift between the
orientation of the molecules and the changing
electrical field
 The rate of heat generation per unit volume ( wm-3 )
Q=2Π f ε0 ε” E2

Where,
• E = Strength of electric field of the wave at that
location (volts / unit distance)
• F = is the frequency
• ε0 =The permittivity of free space (a physical constant)
• ε” = the dielectric loss factor .
PENETRATION EFFECT
CONVENTIONAL VS MICROWAVE HEATING..
 Surface heating  Volumetric heating
 Slow process
 Rapid heating
 Low thermal efficiency
 High thermal Efficiency
electric oven - 14%
mw oven-40%
gas oven - 7%
 Non-uniformity heating  Uniform Heating

 Moisture removal (80-90%)  Moisture removal (<20%)

 Low product quality (over heating,  Better quality product

case hardening)
 APPLICATIONS
MICROWAVE OVEN
•Magnetron converts 50-60 Hz AC to higher frequency EMW
• Applicators waveguides, coaxial tube
 Dielectric properties and penetration depth
(cm) of various foods @ 2,450 MHz
Material ε' ε” Tanδ Dp
Water (distilled, 25°C) 78.0 12.0 0.15 1.4
Ice (-12°C) 3.2 0.003 0.001 1160.0
Beef (cooked, 30°C) 30.5 9.6 0.31 1.1
Potato (raw, 25°C) 57.3 15.7 0.27 0.9
Potato (mashed, 30°C) 72.5 24.0 0.33 0.7
Wheat (20°C, 5% moisture) 3.3 0.50 0.15 7.1
Corn Oil (25°C) 2.5 0.14 0.06 21.9
Cottonseed Oil (20°C) 2.6 0.18 0.07 17.5
Butter (salted, 20°C) 4.6 0.60 0.13 6.9
Butter (unsalted, 20°C) 2.9 0.45 0.16 7.4
Bread Dough 22.0 9.00 0.41 1.0
Bread 4.6 1.20 0.26 3.5
 APPLICATIONS CONT…..

• HYPERTHERMIA: MICROWAVES AS CANCER TREATMENT

Hyperthermia (or thermotherapy) is a cancer treatment

that involves heating tumor cells within the body

• PLASTIC WELDING

•VULCANIZATION OF RUBBER
 APPLICATIONS CONT…..
• Drying system

Temperature profile
 APPLICATIONS CONT…..

Sc h ema t ic o f t h e c o mb in ed mic r o w av e c o n v en t io n a l
d r y in g s ys t em

Air
Tuning screws
Blower
Power meters
Electrical Heaters

GENER
ATOR
Drying Mixing Fan
chamber

3-way circulator

Air Outlet
UNIQUENESS OF MICROWAVE HEATING TECHNOLOGY

 Speed: Processes taking hours by conventional means are

possible in few minutes by mw processing.

 Uniform volumetric heating: Heat is generated uniformly throughout

the entire substance

 Self regulating and differential heating

 Efficiency: Efficiency higher than 70%

 Instantaneous control

 Lower cost: Reduction in processing time thus saving energy and labour

 Compatibility with conventional heating: ( 100-300 % efficient )

LIMITATIONS OF MICROWAVE HEATING..

 High capital investment:

Initial cost of equipment is very high but has lower operating cost, and
increased output.

 More complex technology devices:

Requires skilled personnel for repair and operation.

 Mw radiation problem:
By proper shielding the radiation can be brought down to safer limit.
THANK YOU