To improve the process economy,freeze-drying of initially unsaturated frozen material from aqueous solution is put forward in the present investigation.A novel heat and mass transfer model of freeze-drying with hygroscopic effect was derived on the basis of a new adsorption-desorption relationship.The finite-volume method was adopted in solving the governing equations.Mannitol,a typical pharmaceutical excipient,was selected as the solute in aqueous solution to be dried. Experimental results show that the fr...