Astronaut Ice Cream, Anyone IELTS Reading Answers
The IELTS reading section examines a candidate’s comprehending skills within the stipulated amount of time. The IELTS reading section comprises passages followed by different kinds of questions to holistically judge a student’s grasping abilities while reading. This particular Astronaut Ice Cream, Anyone IELTS Reading Answers has a passage, which consists of the following types of questions:
- Fill in the Blanks
- Diagram Labelling
- Summary Completion
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Section 1
Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions
Astronaut Ice Cream, Anyone IELTS Reading Answers
Breeze-drying is a technique that can help to provide food for astronauts. But it also has other applications nearer home.
- Freeze-drying is like suspended animation for food: you can store a freeze-dried meal for years, and then, when you’re finally ready to eat it. you can completely revitalise it with a little hot water. Even after several years, the original foodstuff will be virtually unchanged.
- The technique basically involves completely removing the water from some material, such as food while leaving the rest of the material virtually intact. The main reason for doing this is either to preserve the food or to reduce its weight. Removing the water from food keeps it from spoiling, because the microorganisms such as bacteria that cause spoiling cannot survive without it. Similarly, the enzymes which occur naturally in food cannot cause ripening without water, so removing water from food will also stop the ripening process.
- Freeze-drying significantly reduces the total weight of the food because most food is largely made up of water; for example, many fruits are more than 80 00% water. Removing this makes the food much lighter and therefore makes transportation less difficult. The military and camping-supply companies freeze-dry foods to make them easier for an individual to carry and NASA has also freeze-dried foods for the cramped quarters on board spacecraft.
- The process is also used to preserve other sorts of material, such as pharmaceuticals. Chemists can greatly extend pharmaceutical shelf life by freeze-drying the material and storing it in a container free of oxygen and water. Similarly, research scientists may use freeze-drying to preserve biological samples for long periods of time. Even valuable manuscripts that had been water damaged have been saved by using this process.
- Freeze-drying is different from simple drying because it is able to remove almost all the water from materials, whereas simple drying techniques can only remove 90-95%. This means that the damage caused by bacteria and enzymes can virtually be stopped rather than just slowed down. In addition, the composition and structure of the material is not significantly changed, so materials can be revitalised without compromising the quality of the original.
- This is possible because in freeze-drying, solid water - ice - is converted directly into water vapour, missing out the liquid phase entirely. This is called ‘sublimation’, the shift from a solid directly into a gas. Just like evaporation, sublimation occurs when a molecule gains enough energy to break free from the molecules around it. Water will sublime from a solid (ice) to a gas (vapour) when the molecules have enough energy to break free but the conditions aren't right for a liquid to form. These conditions arc determined by heat and atmospheric pressure. When the temperature is above freezing point, so that ice can thaw, but the atmospheric pressure is too low for a liquid to form (below 0.06 atmospheres (ATM)) then it becomes a gas.
- This is the principle on which a freeze-drying machine is based. The material to be preserved is placed in a freeze-drying chamber which is connected to a freezing coil and refrigerator compressor. When the chamber is sealed the compressor lowers the temperature inside it. I he material is frozen solid, which separates the water from everything around it on a molecular level, even though the water is still present. Next, a vacuum pump forces air out of the chamber, lowering the atmospheric pressure below to 0.06 ATM. The heating units apply a small amount of heat to the shelves in the chamber, causing the ice to change phase. Since the pressure in the chamber is so low, the ice turns directly into water vapour, which leaves the freeze-drying chamber, and flows past the freezing coil. The water vapour condenses onto the freezing coil in the form of solid ice, in the same way that water condenses as frost on a cold day.
- The process continues for many hours (even days) while the material gradually dries out. This time is necessary to avoid overheating, which might affect the structure of the material. Once it has dried sufficiently, it is sealed in a moisture-free package. As long as the package is secure, the material can sit on a shelf for years and years without degrading, until it is restored to its original form with a little hot water. If everything works correctly, the material will go through the entire process almost completely unscathed.
- In fact, freeze-drying, as a general concept, is not new but has been around for centuries. The ancient Incas of Peru used mountain peaks along the Andes as natural food preservers. The extremely cold temperatures and low pressure at those high altitudes prevented food from spoiling in the same basic way as a modern freeze-drying machine and a freezer.
Section 2
Solution and Explanation
Question 1-5:
Complete the notes below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
| Uses of freeze-drying: • food preservation • easy (1)………………….. of food items • long-term storage of (2)………………..and biological samples • preservation of precious (3)……………… Freeze-drying • is based on the process of (4)…………………… is more efficient than (5)…………………. |
Question 1:
Answer: Transportation
Supporting sentence: Removing this makes the food much lighter and therefore makes transportation less difficult.
Keywords: Easy, food, items
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, Line 2
Explanation: The paragraph talks about the significant uses of freeze-drying. According to it, freeze-drying not only helps to reduce the weight of the food but also makes the transportation process easier and more convenient.
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Question 2:
Answer: Pharmaceuticals
Supporting sentence: The process is also used to preserve other sorts of material, such as pharmaceuticals.
Keywords: Long-term, storage, biological, samples
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, Line 1
Explanation: The paragraph talks about various other uses of freeze-drying. According to it, the freeze-drying process is also very significant for preserving Pharmaceutical products and biological samples as well.
Question 3:
Answer: Manuscripts
Supporting sentence: Even valuable manuscripts that had been water damaged have been saved by using this process.
Keywords: Preservation, precious
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, Last line
Explanation: The paragraph mentions that even the valuable manuscripts which have been sabotaged by water have been saved by the freeze-drying process.
Question 4:
Answer: Sublimation
Supporting sentence: This is possible because in freeze-drying, solid water - ice - is converted directly into water vapour, missing out the liquid phase entirely.
Keywords: Freeze- drying, based, process
Keyword Location: Paragraph F, Line 1-2
Explanation: The paragraph mentions that the process of sublimation is more efficient as during this process the solid water[ice] is directly converted into water vapour without converting into liquid. Hence, “sublimation” is the correct answer.
Question 5:
Answer: Simple drying techniques
Supporting sentence: Freeze-drying is different from simple drying because it is able to remove almost all the water from materials, whereas simple drying techniques can only remove 90-95%.
Keywords: Freeze- drying, efficient
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, Line 1
Explanation: The paragraph mentions that the process of freeze-drying is more efficient as compared to simple drying techniques, as removal of all water from material is possible through freeze-drying whereas simple drying techniques can only remove 90-95% of water.
Questions 6-9:
Label the diagram below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 6-9 on your answer sheet.
Question 6:
Answer: Freeze-drying chamber
Supporting sentence: The material to be preserved is placed in a freeze-drying chamber which is connected to a freezing coil and refrigerator compressor.
Keywords: Freeze-drying, chamber
Keyword Location: Paragraph G, Line 2
Explanation: The whole paragraph talks about the structure of the freeze-drying machine. According to these lines, the first important part of the machine is the freeze-drying chamber. In this freeze-drying chamber, the material which is to be preserved is placed.
Question 7:
Answer: Shelves
Supporting sentence: The heating units apply a small amount of heat to the shelves in the chamber, causing the ice to change phase.
Keywords: Heating, units
Keyword Location: Paragraph G, Line 7
Explanation: According to the passage, a small amount of heat is applied to the shelves in the chamber thus, causing the solid ice to change the phase. Hence, the part with heating units is shelves
Question 8:
Answer: Freezing coil
Supporting sentence: The water vapour condenses onto the freezing coil in the form of solid ice, in the same way that water condenses as frost on a cold day.
Keywords: Heating, units
Keyword Location: Paragraph G, Last line
Explanation: According to the passage, when the heat is released on the ice, the solid ice turns directly into water vapour and leaves the freezing chamber via a freezing coil.
Question 9:
Answer: [refrigerator] Compressor
Supporting sentence: The material to be preserved is placed in a freeze-drying chamber which is connected to a freezing coil and refrigerator compressor.
Keywords: Heating, units
Keyword Location: Paragraph G, Line 2
Explanation: According to the passage, the freeze-drying chamber is connected with the freezing coil and refrigerator compressor. Therefore, this part can be labelled as a compressor.
Questions 10-13:
Complete the summary below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 10-13 on your answer sheet.
Freeze-drying prevents food from going bad by stopping the activity of microorganisms or (10)…………………. Its advantages are that the food tastes and feels the same as the original because both the (11)………………….and structure are preserved. The process is carried out slowly in order to ensure that (12)…………………does not take place. The people of one ancient mountain civilizations were able to use this method of food preservation because the conditions needed were present at (13)………………….
Question 10:
Answer: Enzymes
Supporting sentence: Similarly, the enzymes which occur naturally in food cannot cause ripening without water, so removing water from food will also stop the ripening process.
Keywords: Prevents, food, going bad, stopping, microorganisms
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, Last line
Explanation: According to the passage, the freeze-drying process has many benefits. One of the crucial benefits of this process is that it helps to preserve the food by putting a halt to the activities of microorganisms and enzymes. Enzymes naturally occur in the food, thus this process removes the water from the food and stops the enzymes from acting.
Question 11:
Answer: Composition
Supporting sentence: In addition, the composition and structure of the material is not significantly changed, so materials can be revitalised without compromising the quality of the original.
Keywords: Advantages, tastes, feels, same, original, structure, preserved
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, Line 4
Explanation: The freeze-drying process not only prevents bacteria and enzymes from acting on the food but also preserves the original composition and structure of the food material.
Question 12:
Answer: Overheating
Supporting sentence: This time is necessary to avoid overheating, which might affect the structure of the material.
Keywords: Process, carried, slowly, ensure
Keyword Location: Paragraph H, Line 2
Explanation: The process of freeze-drying is a slow process carried out for many hours, even days to dry out the material. This process is carried out slowly to avoid overheating of the material, which in turn can spoil the structure of the material.
Question 13:
Answer: High altitudes
Supporting sentence: The ancient Incas of Peru used mountain peaks along the Andes as natural food preservers.
Keywords: ancient, mountain, civilisation, use, method, food preservation, condition
Keyword Location: Paragraph I, Line 2
Explanation: The ancient mountain civilization was able to use this method of preserving nature. The cold temperatures and high altitudes prevented food from spoiling.
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