System and Method to Control Energy Input to a Material

A system for controlling energy that is input to a material substance for the controlled removal of moisture from the material substance, said system comprising:

• a cooling/de-humidification subsystem for accepting ambient air and for decreasing a temperature level and/or a humidity level of said ambient air to produce a relatively dry and cool pre-conditioned air;
• a heating/humidification subsystem operationally connected to said cooling/de-humidification subsystem to accept said pre-conditioned air and to add thermal energy and moisture to said pre-conditioned air to produce a controlled air having a specified humidity level at a specified temperature level;
• an energy transfer chamber operationally connected to said heating/humidification subsystem to accept said controlled air such that said controlled air passes across a material substance within said energy transfer chamber and transfers thermal energy from said controlled air to said material substance, thereby causing at least one outer surface of said material substance to lose moisture in a controlled manner;
• and
• a variable power microwave source operationally connected to said energy transfer chamber to provide microwave energy into said energy transfer chamber such that said material substance may absorb at least a part of said microwave energy and convert said absorbed microwave energy to thermal energy within said material substance, thereby causing at least an internal volume of said material substance to lose moisture in a controlled manner.

A method of controlling energy that is input to a material substance for the controlled removal of moisture from the material substance, said method comprising;

• providing an in-bound ambient air volume flowing at a specified flow rate;
• reducing a temperature level and/or a humidity level of said flowing inbound ambient air volume to form a flowing pre-conditioned air volume;
• increasing a temperature level and/or a humidity level of said flowing pre-conditioned air volume to a specified humidity level at a specified temperature level to form a flowing controlled air volume containing the desired thermal energy and moisture levels required by a material substance to be conditioned;
• directing said flowing controlled air volume across the material substance which contains moisture such that at least a part of said thermal energy within said flowing controlled air volume is absorbed by said material substance to reduce said moisture on at least an outer surface of said material substance;
• and
• irradiating said material substance with microwave energy such that at least a part of said microwave energy is absorbed within said material substance to reduce said moisture within said material substance.

A system for controlling energy that is input to a material substance for the removal of moisture from the material substance, said system comprising:

• a cooling subsystem for accepting ambient air and for decreasing a temperature level of said ambient air to produce a saturated air at a first specified temperature level at 100% relative humidity;
• a heating subsystem operationally connected to said cooling subsystem to accept said saturated air and to add thermal energy to said saturated air to produce a controlled air having a second specified temperature level, which is higher than said first specified temperature level, at a specified relative humidity level which is lower than 100%;
• an energy transfer chamber operationally connected to said heating subsystem to accept said controlled air such that said controlled air passes across a material substance within said energy transfer chamber and transfers thermal energy from said controlled air to said material substance, thereby causing at least one outer surface of said material substance to lose moisture in a controlled manner;
• and
• a microwave source operationally connected to said energy transfer chamber to provide microwave energy into said energy transfer chamber such that said material substance may absorb at least a part of said microwave energy and convert said absorbed microwave energy to thermal energy within said material substance, thereby causing at least an internal volume of said material substance to lose moisture in a controlled manner.