Cold Facts Digital – The go-to place for Cryogenics and Superconductivity

Scientists Shine a Laser Through a Human Head

The possible path of 50 photons sent through a human head from a laser [left, in red] to a detector [right, green]. Credit: Extreme Light group/University of Glasgow For the most part, anyone who wants to see what’s going on inside someone else’s brain has to make a trade-off when...

OPW Clean Energy Solutions Showcases Advanced Cryogenic Solutions at Gastech Milan 2025

OPW Clean Energy Solutions (OPWCES) will highlight its latest cryogenic innovations at Gastech 2025, taking place September 9–12 at Fiera Milano in Milan, Italy. Visitors can meet the OPW CES team at Booth #O31 to explore technologies designed to support the expanding hydrogen, LNG, and industrial gas markets. The company...

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI) are launching a two-year initiative to design a next-generation radio telescope with capabilities far beyond existing observatories. Building on the success of the NSF’s Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA), the proposed array—called the next-generation Very Large Array (ngVLA)—will feature over 200 antennas spanning the US desert southwest and northern Mexico. This facility aims to advance our understanding of planets, galaxies, black holes, and fundamental physics. Credit: Bill Saxton, NRAO/AUI/NSF

NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory and RIX Industries Join Forces to Revolutionize Cryogenic Cooling for the ngVLA Project

by RIX Industries Communications Team In a groundbreaking collaboration that could change the landscape of both scientific discovery and cryogenic technology, the U.S. National Science Foundation’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) has teamed up with RIX Industries to develop cutting-edge cryogenic cooling solutions for the Next Generation Very Large...

A high precision accelerator cryomodule produced by Meyer Tool for use in a particle accelerator at Brookhaven National Lab. MTM’s fabrication expertise is trusted by national labs and quantum technology firms worldwide. Credit: Meyer Tool & Manufacturing, Inc.

Meyer Tool Builds the Impossible, Empowering Illinois Manufacturing

by Christian Cunningham, Meyer Tool & Manufacturing Inc. Meyer Tool & Manufacturing, Inc., a long-standing leader in cryogenic, pressure and vacuum technologies, has reached a major milestone in its growth journey. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) recently approved the company for participation in the Manufacturing Illinois...

Figure 1: An artist's rendering of the COSI satellite. Credit: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Goddard Goings

An insight into past, present and future cryogenic missions where the Cryogenics and Fluids Branch at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center had or has a significant role. by Mark Kimball, Ph.D., Cryogenics and Fluids Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Readers of this column may recall last year’s recounting of...

The LOXSAT payload undergoes environmental control testing at the Kennedy Space Center’s EMI Lab in November 2024. Credit: Eta Space

Eta Space Progresses Cryogenic Fluid Management Technology in Space, Energy and Beyond

by Leah Sudhir, Eta Space Eta Space is at the forefront of cryogenic fluid management (CFM) technology for the aerospace industry, continuously pushing the boundaries of innovation and expanding its customer base. Founded by Dr. William “Bill” Notardonato, who brings over 30 years of experience from NASA, the company has...

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

Food Processing

Cryogenics and Food The industrial gas industry provides a host of products and services related to food. The various gases have useful and sometimes fascinating applications in food industry. “The food industry is not a homogenous industry. The needs of customers processing hamburger vs. poultry vs. strawberries vs. seafood, for...

Primary Standards

Elie K. Track Hypres, Inc. elie@hypres.com http://www.hypres.com/ Primary standards involve the exact definition and realization of units of measurement for various quantities, time, length, mass, voltage, resistance, current, etc. International agreements based on the latest scientific knowledge define those units, and their realizations vary depending on the unit itself. For...

Shrink Fitting

Robin A. Rhodes Cryogenic Institute of New England, Inc. rrhodes@nitrofreeze.com Shrink fitting, (or “compression fitting” as it is sometimes called), is a method used to insert a pin or bushing into a housing or other assembly requiring an extremely tight tolerance fit. It can be used as an alternative to...

Telecommunications

From the Winter 2004 issue of Cold Facts magazine The recent M-Calc IV — 4th Industry Assessment workshop discussing military and commercial applications for low-cost cryocoolers, held in November in San Diego, highlighted progress being made in cryogenics as applied in telecommunications. The reliability and long lifetime of projects now...

Latest in Ask the Experts

Information on how the emissivity of the panel changes with air fouling?

I work at a facility with a large thermal vacuum chamber. We are using both nitrogen and helium shrouds.

In search of a calculation for designing a cryostat

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...

Safety of ethylene glycol and pressurized oxygen

We are reviewing the product design of liquid filled differential level gauges and want to insure that they meet the industry requirements. The former license owner had authorized that a fill fluid of ethylene glycol (68%) and distilled water (32%) could be used for oxygen service up to 500 psi....

Heat flux in case of vacuum loss on cryogenic surfaces?

Is there anyone who has information about the heat flux in case of vacuum loss on cryogenic surfaces?

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