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New NASA Gears Can Withstand Impact, Freezing Temperatures during Lunar Missions

A joint NASA JPl/Caltech project is developing special gears that can withstand the extreme temperatures experienced during missions to the Moon and beyond. Many exploration destinations in our solar system are frigid and require hardware that can withstand the extreme cold. During NASA’s Artemis missions, temperatures at the Moon’s South...

Technifab Introduces Updated Automatic Dewar Filling Station

Technifab Products (CSA CSM), a producer of cryogenic equipment and systems, released the latest version of their Automatic Fill Station, the AFS-01. The system is designed to fill portable low pressure liquid nitrogen dewars from a pipe system or bulk tank. The AFS-01 puts an emphasis on three main points:...

APS designates Sanford Lab, Morgan State University as historic physics sites

On September 14, the American Physical Society (APS) announced it has designated Sanford Lab Underground Research Facility (SURF) and Morgan State University as two Historic Sites in physics. SURF, located in Lead SD, is being recognized for its role in neutrino research led by Ray Davis while Morgan State University...

Lab Researcher and Physics Undergrad Creates Poster Project Honoring Black Physicists

Inspired by the nation’s grappling with issues of race and racial discrimination, UC Berkeley physics major and Berkeley Lab student assistant Ana Lyons turned to art as a way to contribute to the conversation. Aware of the scientific community’s own self-reflection for its history of racial inequity and discrimination, Lyons...

LIGO, Virgo Detect Most Massive Gravitational-Wave Source Yet

On September 2, researchers at LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory) in California and Virgo Interferometer have detected a signal from what may be the most massive black hole merger yet observed in gravitational waves. The product of the merger is the first clear detection of an “intermediate-mass” black hole, with...

Pandemic’s Global Slowdown Relieves Helium Industry Pressure

Last September, Cold Facts examined the then-ongoing third global helium shortage (Cold Facts, Vol. 35, Number 4) as it forced the world to reconsider the myriad applications and processes utilizing helium. Now, as the pandemic slows the global economy, helium users and experts are reconsidering what the future of helium...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Dewar

A dewar is a type of cryostat named after Sir James Dewar, the researcher who first developed the concept of a vacuum insulated container with silvered walls to reflect thermal radiation. Dewar was the first to liquefy hydrogen, and he created the device to store his discovery. The thermos bottle...

Stirling and Gifford-McMahon Cryocoolers

Stirling and Gifford-McMahon (GM) cryocoolers are two of the most commonly used cryocoolers in cryogenics. Both devices have a significant industrial base and operate at a wide range of temperatures and capacities. The thermodynamic cycles for both of these cryocoolers are quite similar. The Stirling cycle consists of a compressor,...

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

A significant commercial application of cryogenics is the liquefaction, transport and storage of natural gas. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is generally 95 percent methane with a few percent ethane and much lower concentrations of propane and butane. LNG liquefies at 111.6 K. Unlike many applications of cryogenics, the motivation for...

Latest in Cryo Central

History of Cryogenics

From the Fall 1999 issue of Cold Facts magazine Millennium Breakthroughs A variety of CSA members give different perspectives on the past millennium: What were the most significant breakthroughs in cryogenics during the past millennium? Prof. R.G. Scurlock, Kryos Technology, scurlock@soton.ac.uk (“Breakthrough” = way through obstacles — Oxford English Dictionary)...

Cryobiology

Andreas Sputtek Past President Society for Cryobiology sputtek@uke.uni-hamburg.de or http://www.sputtek.de/. The word cryobiology (from the Greek words “cryo” = cold, “bios” = life, and “logos” = science) literally signifies the science of life at low temperatures. In practice, this field comprises the study of any biological material or system (e.g.,...

Cryogenic Insulation

James E. Fesmire Cryogenics Test Laboratory NASA Kennedy Space Center james.e.fesmire@nasa.gov Introduction In today’s world, the use of cryogenics and low-temperature refrigeration is taking a more and more significant role. From the food industry, transportation, energy, and medical applications to the Space Shuttle, cryogenic liquids must be stored, handled, and...

Cryogenic Treatment of Materials

F.J. Diekman Controlled Thermal Processing, Inc. info@metal-wear.com Cryogenic Processing (also called cryogenic treatment, and incorrectly “cryogenic tempering”) is a process that uses cryogenic temperatures to modify materials to enhance their performance. Cryogenic Processing involves the slow reduction in temperature of the material to at least -300°F (-185°C) and holding the...

Latest in Ask the Experts

Seeking alloy that keeps elastic property down to 10K

I am looking for a metal (alloy) that supports high temperatures (at least 1600K) and keeps its elastic property at low temperatures down to 10K. Rhenium is a good one because it does not become brittle. But it is quite expensive. Pure tungsten and molybdenum enter in the brittle regime...

Searching for a freezer that does not need electricity

I’m student of University of Barcelona. We do technical cryogenic research and we are searching for a cryogenic portable freezer that does not need electricity. We can’t find any company that offers something like this. The product we are looking for is the typical portable freezer for food or drinks...

FEP Encapsulated O rings in the cryogenic process

Can you please advise if FEP Encapsulated O rings are used within the cryogenic process and what materials? I have been asked by my company to write about FEP Encapsulated O rings for a training seminar.

Need material property data for polycrystalline / sintered ceramics

I am a ME grad student currently working on the design of a detector array / focal plate of a scientific space instrument operating at a temperature of about -80…-100°C. Although this is not in the cryogenic temperature range, I would like to address two questions to you as the...

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