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| ABOUT CRYOGENICS |
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 Cryogenics
is that branch of physics and
engineering that involves the
study of very low temperatures,
how to produce these conditions,
and the behavior of materials at
those temperatures. Cryogenic
freezing is an upcoming food
processing technology that is
fast gaining popularity because
of the lower setup costs and
improved food quality when
compared to mechanical freezing.
Cryogenic freezing involves
freezing the outer layers of the
food beyond its actual freezing
point, while the inner part of
the product remains warm. The
product's final temperature is
not its temperature as it exits
the cryogenic tunnel. Only after
up to 15 minutes later is its
final temperature known, after
full equilibration or
equalization.
The field of cryogenics received
a fillip when, during World War
II, scientists found that metals
frozen to low temperatures
became more resistant to wear.
Applying this phenomenon of
cryogenic hardening, the
commercial cryogenic processing
industry was spawned in 1966 by
Ed Busch.
Busch founded a
company in Detroit called CryoTech in 1966 and drew
heavily from his background in
the heat treating industry.
Before merging with 300 Below to
create the largest and oldest
commercial cryogenics company,
CryoTech ushered in a true
technological innovation .They
established the possibility of
increasing the life of metal
tools to anywhere between
200%-400% of the original life
expectancy using cryogenic
tempering instead of heat
treating. Applications rapidly
proliferated. In the late
1990's, cryogenics was used for
the treatment of other parts
(that did more than just
increase the life of a product)
such as amplifier valves
(improved sound quality),
baseball bats (greater sweet
spot), golf clubs (greater sweet
spot), racing engines (greater
performance under stress),
firearms (less warping after
continuous shooting), knives,
razor blades, brake rotors and
even pantyhose.
 CryoTech's theory was based on
how heat-treating metal works
(the temperatures are lowered to
room temperature from a high
degree causing certain strength
increases in the molecular
structure to occur) and hinged
on the premise that continuing
the descent would allow for
further increase in strength.
Using liquid nitrogen, CryoTech
formulated the first early
version of the cryogenic
processor. Unfortunately for the
newly-born industry, the results
were often unpredictable, as
components underwent thermal
shock when cooled too fast. Some
components in early tests even
shattered at ultra-low
temperatures. The rise of
applied research, which coupled
microprocessor based industrial
controls to the cryogenic
processor in order to create
more stable results,
revolutionized the field.
Cryogens, like liquid nitrogen,
are nowadays used for specialty
chilling and freezing
applications. Some chemical
reactions, like those used to
produce the active ingredients
for the popular statin drugs,
must occur at low temperatures
of approximately -100 °C.
Special cryogenic chemical
reactors are used to remove
reaction heat and provide a low
temperature environment. The
freezing of foods and
biotechnology products, like
vaccines, requires nitrogen in
blast freezing or immersion
freezing systems have added to
the shelf life and nutrient
value. Certain soft or elastic
materials become hard and
brittle at very low
temperatures, which makes
cryogenic milling (grinding) a
necessity for some materials
that cannot easily be milled at
higher temperatures. |
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