Effect of a magnetic field on water desorption from the surface of potato starch

Abstract

In this work we describe the kinetics and the extent of water desorption from the surface of natural organic particles under conditions of a magnetic field, with magnetic induction exceeding a thousand times the induction of a geomagnetic field. The scope of the present study included a comparative analysis of the kinetics and the extent of water vapour desorption under natural conditions and in an artificially-created magnetic field. The research material were potato starch particles that were characterized in terms of grain size. The results of the study showed that the impact of a strong magnetic field significantly affects both the kinetics of the process of water vapour desorption as well as its extent. Regardless of the test temperature, the magnetic field effect increased the kinetics and extent of the phenomenon under study. Starch particles dehydrated more rapidly and deeper under the influence of a strong magnetic field. This fact enables us to state that under conditions different than those occurring on the Earth’s surface, the storage stability of organic particles will be significantly different from those observed in Earthlike conditions. This, in turn, may contribute to a radical change in the durability of food found in such conditions. The result of this experiment also raises hopes for the use of magnetic fields to reduce the costs associated with energy-intensive drainage processes. This may be of particular importance when dewatering substances sensitive to high temperatures. The results achieved also point to the feasibility of increasing the functional effectiveness of the facilities used for the dehydration of products sensitive to high temperatures.

Keywords

• magnetic field
• increase in desorption kinetics
• increase in the extent of desorption
• food durability in extraterrestrial conditions