Vacuum evaporation is used to prepare foods, but it can be used in other industries to create products we use every day.
Written by: Denton Vacuum, LLC
A vacuum evaporation system causes liquid to evaporate, which creates pressure. The chamber reduces that pressure to below the vapor pressure of the liquid, effectively evaporating water and other liquids through extreme heat in a controlled area. This process is used to boil something at room temperature by lowering the internal pressure below the atmospheric pressure.
Though the process is used extensively to dry foods, it is also has industrial applications too. It can be used to treat wastewater, for instance, by evaporating the harmful chemicals. This creates a clean and efficient way of managing waste water, with zero-discharge.
Vacuum evaporation is also a major component in thin film deposition systems. These systems apply a microscopic coating to common products, using an EBeam inside of a sealed chamber. With this process, companies can mass produce mirrors with a cheap reflective coating. Glasses can become scratch resistant, or have anti-glare properties with the right materials. Vacuum evaporation also has the added property of distilling liquids with a high boiling point, especially when those materials are susceptible to high heat. With vacuum evaporation, manufacturers can get the temperature they need to melt something without ruining the integrity of the substance.
Vacuum evaporation is used on semiconductors as well. The technique uses thin film deposition systems, and it increases the pressure inside the chamber to produce a vapor. The vapor stays in the chamber, and when the air is cooled, the vapor falls onto the substrate. This creates the thin film coating, which is deposited as the chamber is cooled.
