Microwave material processing—a review

Abstract

Microwave heating is caused by the ability of the materials to absorb microwave energy and convert it to heat. This article represents a review on fundamentals of microwave heating and their interaction with materials for various applications in a comprehensive manner. Experimental studies of single, multimode, and variable frequency microwave processing were reviewed along with their applications. Modeling of microwave heating based on Lambert's law and Maxwell's electromagnetic field equations have also been reviewed along with their applications. Modeling approaches were used to predict the effect of resonances on microwave power absorption, the role of supports for microwave heating, and to determine the nonuniformity on heating rates. Various industrial applications on thermal processing have been reviewed. There is tremendous scope for theoretical and experimental studies on the athermal effects of microwaves. Some of the unresolved problems are identified and directions for further research are also suggested.

Role of Microwave Sintering in the Preparation of Ferrites for High Frequency Applications

“…In microwave heating, heat is produced in the materials when the materials absorb microwave energy. Various articles have been published [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31] on fundamentals of microwave heating and its eff ects with various materials for many applications. Th e ability of microwaves to penetrate the materials and couple within it give the eff ective precise control heating.…”

Generalized characterization of microwave power absorption for processing of circular shaped materials

“…Microwave assisted heating has gained significant attention over the last few decades, due to various advantages over conventional processing such as faster processing and lower energy consumption (Chandrasekaran et al, 2012(Chandrasekaran et al, , 2013Ciacci et al, 2010;Durairaj and Basak, 2009;Erchiqui, 2013;Gao et al, 2013;Kappe and Dallinger, 2006;Lam and Chase, 2012;Leonelli and Mason, 2010;Lovas et al, 2011;Mutyala et al, 2010;Nuchter et al, 2003;Tyagi and Lo, 2013). The superiority of microwave heating relies mainly on the heating/power absorption pattern.…”

Thermodynamics model based temperature tracking control in microwave heating

“…Microwave (MW) is a novel, green and efficient energy source, which finds both domestic and industrial applications for thermal purposes such as cooking and sterilization of food materials (Motasemi and Ani, 2012;Lakshmi et al, 2007;Novotny et al, 2013), assisting chemical reaction (Spigno and De Faveri, 2009;Svensen et al, 2008) and sintering of ceramics (Chandrasekaran et al, 2012). Thermal run-away and the non-uniformity of heating are the particular phenomena that constitute the major challenges to the industrial development of microwave heating process (Akkari et al, 2005).…”