Freeze-Drying

Many modern pharmaceutical and biological products, e.g. blood derivatives, vaccines, cytostatic drugs, antibiotics, bacteria cultures but also consumer goods such as soluble coffee are freeze-dried to transform perishable substances into a form that can be stored and reconstituted to their almost original state without loss of quality. The book describes the up-to-date fundamentals of freeze-drying, not just presenting the process in all its seven steps theoretically, but explaining it with many practical examples. Many years of experience in freeze-drying allow the authors to supply valuable criteria for the selection of laboratory, pilot and production plants, discussing the advantages, drawbacks and limitations of different plant designs. In this second, completely revised edition, process and plant automation are introduced in a separate section and methods to transfer pilot plant qualifications and process data to production are presented. The guidelines for process and plant evaluation and qualifications have been updated and enlarged. Trouble shooting is concentrated in a section of its own and literature has been updated with 100 new quotations to include references as recent as 2002, and 100 new tables and figures have been added.Content: Chapter 1a Foundations and Process Engineering: Section 1.1 (Freezing) (pages 1–75): Chapter 1b Foundations and Process Engineering: Sections 1.2 (Drying) and 1.3 (Storage) (pages 76–163): Chapter 2a Installation and Equipment Technique: Sections 2.1 and 2.2 (pages 165–228): Chapter 2b Installation and Equipment Technique: Sections 2.3 ? 2.7 (pages 229–293): Chapter 3 Pharmaceutical, Biological and Medical Products (pages 295–344): Chapter 4 Food and Luxury Food (pages 345–357): Chapter 5 Metal Oxides, Ceramic Powders (pages 359–365): Chapter 6 Trouble Shooting and Regulatory Issues (pages 367–384): Cover Page......Page 1 Also of interest:......Page 3 Title Page......Page 4 ISBN 352730620X......Page 5 Table of Contents (with page links)......Page 6 Preface......Page 9 Preface to the First Edition......Page 11 1 Foundations and Process Engineering......Page 13 2 Installation and Equipment Technique......Page 177 3 Pharmaceutical, Biological and Medical Products......Page 307 4 Food and Luxury Food......Page 357 5 Metal Oxides, Ceramic Powders......Page 371 6 Trouble Shooting and Regulatory Issues......Page 379 Appendix Abbreviations, Symbols and Unit of Measure......Page 397 Index (with page links)......Page 401 Back Page......Page 408 Freeze-drying or lyophilization is a drying process in which the solvent and/or the suspension medium is crystallized at low temperatures and thereafter sublimed from the solid state directly into the vapor phase.