3. Microwave applications for ceramic processes

3.1 Debinding and drying of ceramics by microwave heating

Industrial or domestic applications dedicated to drying, defrosting, cooking or dehydration are widely developed in the food industry. The debinding process, which consists in eliminating the organic components added during the first stages of ceramic or metallic material manufacturing, is a crucial step that determines the quality of the "green" part with its low mechanical strength. Moreover, this debinding operation, depending on the shaping process, can take several tens of hours, given the content and nature of the polymers/organics making up the binders or plasticizers used. Heat treatment by conduction/convection from the outside to the inside of the parts is generally used, but can generate cracks through thermal gradients...