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Young Professionals 2019: The Next Generation in Cryogenics Part 2

Young Professionals 2019 Part 2 introduces outstanding young professionals (under 40 years of age) who are doing interesting things in cryogenics and superconductivity and who show promise of making a difference in their fields.

CERN Successfully Tests Cooler Way to Transport Electricity

A 60-meter-long line has been developed for CERN’s future accelerator, the High-Luminosity LHC, which is due to come into operation in 2026. Tests began last year and the line has transported 40,000 amps, 20 times more than what is possible at room temperature with ordinary copper cables of a similar...

Cryogenics, Superconductivity Enabled Historic Black Hole Photograph

In April, the Event Horizon Telescope captured the first ever photo of a black hole. Superconducting submillimeter detectors, developed by engineers and astronomers at the University of Virginia and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Charlottesville, helped make visible what once was only black. These devices were responsible for capturing...

Cryo-EM Imaging Enables First Snapshots of Trapped CO2 Molecules

Scientists have taken the first images of carbon dioxide molecules within a molecular cage using a new twist on cryo-EM imaging. The development came in mid-June and reveals what’s going on inside MOFs, highly porous nanoparticles with big potential for storing fuel, separating gases and removing carbon dioxide from the...

NASA Explorers: Apollo Audio Series Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11

Listen to people from all over the world recount their favorite Apollo memories or share their hopes for what’s yet to come in space exploration. In a new audio series, listeners will hear from a moon detective, scientists who study space rocks and people from all over the world whose...

Research Group Sets New Temperature Record For Superconductivity

An international team of scientists has built a superconductor that functions at 250 K, nearly 50 °C (84.6 °F) hotter than the previous record high for superconductivity—and it puts the “holy grail” of energy transmission almost within reach. In a study published in Nature, scientists describe their new material, lanthanum...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Refrigerators and Liquefiers

Two of the most common terms used in cryogenics are “refrigerator” and “liquefier.” These terms describe similar and, as will be seen, in some cases identical components. A refrigerator provides cooling (that is, absorbs heat) at cryogenic temperatures. Refrigerators typically put a working fluid (such as helium) through one of...

Air Separation

Air separation is one of the largest, as well as earliest, industrial applications of cryogenics. In this process, cryogenic temperatures are used to separate air into its constituent gases: nitrogen (78.08%), oxygen (20.95%), argon (0.93%) and carbon dioxide (0.3%). Trace gases such as krypton, neon, xenon and helium total far...

Coefficient of Performance and Figure of Merit

The coefficient of performance (COP) is used to describe the effectiveness of refrigerators, including those operating at cryogenic temperatures. The COP is defined as the amount of heat removed at the cryogenic operating temperature of the refrigerator divided by the amount of work that must be applied to remove the...

Latest in Cryo Central

Air Separation and Liquefaction

by Nils Tellier, PE, President, EPSIM Corporation (CSA CSM) nils@epsim.us All illustrations courtesy EPSIM Corporation Background History of Air Separation and Liquefaction This section builds on a rich history of methods to develop deep refrigeration and cryogenic liquefaction during the 19th Century. You are encouraged to read Cryo Central’s History...

Bose-Einstein Condensate

A Bose-Einstein condensate, first proposed in 1925 by Albert Einstein based on work done by Satyendra Nath Bose (the same Bose from whom the term boson is derived), is a super-cold state of matter in which almost all of the individual atoms have “condensed” down to the lowest possible quantum...

Cold Technology for Pest Control

While it does not reach temperatures cold enough to be called cryogenic, carbon dioxide snow is at the heart of a new way of dealing with unwanted pests. It utilizes a quick freezing process that takes advantage of the properties of carbon dioxide snow and has a number of benefits...

Cryogenic Finishing

The following 3 articles discuss the uses and procedures of various type of cryogenic finishing. 1) By Robin A. Rhodes, Cryogenic Institute of New England, Inc. rrhodes@nitrofreeze.com Cryogenic Deflashing is employed to remove undesired residual mold flash that remains on molded parts after they are removed or ejected from the...

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