Theory: Freeze drying or sublimation drying consists of simply reducing the temperature & pressure to values below the triple point .(4.579mm of Hg& temp. of 0.0099 c)
• Under these conditions, any heat transferred is used as latent heat & the ice sublimes directly to the vapour state.
• Many pharmaceutical products lose their viability in liquid state & readily deteriorate if dried in air at normal atmospheric pressure.
• These pharmaceutical products may be heat sensitive or they may react readily with oxygen
• Such materials are blood serum, plasma, antibiotics, hormones, bacterial cultures, vaccines, & many foodstuffs.
Construction:
Freeze dryer is composed of four basic components:
A chamber for vacuum drying: Having shelves for keep the material
A vacuum source: vacuum pump is connected to the chamber.
A heat source: heat is provided by conduction or radiation.
A vapour removal system as vacuum pump: The condenser consists of large cooled surface by solid carbon dioxide mixed with acetone or ethanol.
Working: steps involved in freeze drying are
1. Pre-treatment: Solution is concentrated in normal vacuum tray dryer before introducing in the chamber this reduces drying by 8-10 times.
2. Pre-freezing: Ampoules, vials and bottles having aqueous solution are packed and frozen in cold shelves at a temp. below - 500C.
3. Primary drying: The material to be dried is spread to increase the surface area for sublimation.98-99% moisture removed.
4. Secondary drying: Remaining moisture is removed by vacuum drying done at 50- 600C.It takes 10-20 hrs.
5. Packing: Biological products are dried packed in aseptic condition immediately after drying.