2. Equipment and operating procedures

2.1 Equipment

A freeze-dryer generally consists of a drying chamber containing the product to be freeze-dried, a condenser to trap water vapor and a pumping system. These components are described schematically in figure 5 .

The drying chamber is an enclosure equipped to reduce air leakage sufficiently to achieve an acceptable vacuum level, usually housing a set of shelves. Depending on the type of products to be freeze-dried, whether solids with a high water content (food products) or solutions (peptides or small therapeutic molecules), they may be placed directly on trays or in flasks. In the pharmaceutical field, formulations to be freeze-dried...