3D numerical analysis of the thermal effect and dielectric anisotropy on thawing frozen wood using microwave energy

This paper addresses the thawing of frozen wood by microwave. The effect of thermal and dielectric anisotropy on thawing wood is considered. The nonlinear heat conduction problem involving phase changes such as wood freezing is solved using three-dimensional volumetric specific enthalpy based on finite-element analysis. The dielectric and thermophysical properties are a function of temperature, moisture content and structural orientation. The specific volumetric enthalpy approach is validated by analytical, numerical and experimental testing. Finally, we studied the thermal effect and dielectric anisotropy on thawing frozen sugar maple wood (Acer saccharum) at 2466 MHz.