Heat and mass transfer in water‐laden sandstone: Microwave heating

Abstract

Abstract Our previous theoretical model was extended to predict the heat and mass transfer phenomena in microwave‐heated porous materials. A water‐filled sandstone was heated in microwaves and its drying rates and temperature profiles were measured. Predictions agree well with observations. Besides moisture loss rates and temperature profiles, the model also predicts local moisture content, gas densities, and pressure. These latter quantities were not measured in our work, but are of interest since they reveal the basic mechanisms of heat and mass transfer in internally heated porous media.