15
0
500
1000
1500
...
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
Vacuum Pr
essur
e
M
easur
ed b
y m
Torr
Freeze Dryer Cycle
FREEZE DRYER CYCLE GRAPH
18.
When the freezing cycle is
completed the vacuum pump will
power on automatically. The display
will then read “
Drying…” Within
10-20 minutes the display will show
a vacuum pressure that displays
a number below 2500 mTorr. (If
your freeze dryer does not achieve
a pressure within the specified
time period, the vacuum pump will
automatically turn off. This will
alert you to a vacuum leak and likely
prevent oil from spurting out of the
vacuum pump and creating a mess.)
Once the freeze dryer recognizes
that most of the moisture is removed
from the material, the “
Final Dry”
(
see image on page 16, Figure 8
)
cycle will then remain on for the
default time or a customized time
if the settings were adjusted at the
beginning of the process. When the
process is complete an audible signal
will be heard and the display will
read “
Complete”.
The graph shown below provides
a representation of how the freeze
dryer operates. The numbers to the
left represent the mTorr pressure
and the number of heating cycles
are represented below. The number
of cycles will vary depending on the
moisture content and cellular structure
of the food. Different foods will have
more or fewer cycles than indicated.
Also, cycle times will vary depending
on the type of food that is being
Figure 7 - Freeze Dryer Display
Press “Start” to begin.
