Calorimetry study of microwave absorption of some solid materials

In practice, the dielectric constant of a material varies the applied frequency the material composition, particle size, purity, temperature, physical state (solid or liquid), and moisture content. All of these parameters might change during processing, therefore, it is difficult to predict how well a material will absorb microwave energy in a given process. When the temperature is measured by a digital thermometer, it could not accurately reflect the true temperature of the bulk materials, especially for mixed materials. Thus, in this paper we measured the microwave absorption characteristics of different materials by calorimetry. The microwave power levels, irradiation times, and masses of the materials were varied. It was difficult to predict the microwave energy absorption characteristics of reagent-grade inorganic compounds based on their color, metallic cation, or water stoichiometry. CuO, MnO2, Fe3O4, and MnSO4 x H2O (Taishan) strongly absorbed microwave energy. Most of the remaining inorganic compounds were poor absorbers, with silica hardly absorbing any microwave energy. Carbon-based materials had significantly different microwave absorption characteristics. Activated carbon and coke were especially sensitive to microwaves, but different types of coal were poor absorbers. The jamesonite concentrate absorbed microwave energy strongly, while the zinc concentrate was a poor absorber.