I am a final year physics student at the University of Birmingham, and as part of a group I am currently designing a cryostat. One of the calculations I need to make (very soon!) is how much heat will be conducted down the walls. All information I have found so far ignores the cooling effect of helium gas, which will be evaporated. I was wondering if you had some information that might help me.
1 Comment
Ralph Scurlock
August 1, 2008If the cryostat wall is long enough (and not very long anyway) all the conducted heat flowing down the wall can be absorbed by the cold helium
vapor. This may sound too good to be true, but it is. See my reference in “The design of low-loss liquid helium dewars”, Proceedings ICEC2, Brighton, 144,(1968).
Coincidentally, your design problem is much more fully discussed in my book, to be published next week, entitled “Low-Loss Storage and Handling of Cryogenic Liquids” at A355. Why not ask your supervisor to get a copy from me for the departmental library.