cryogenics (redirected from cryogeny)

cryogenics: see low-temperature physics.

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cryogenics

Study and use of low-temperature phenomena. The cryogenic temperature range is from −238°F (−150°C) to absolute zero. At low temperatures, matter has unusual properties. Substances that are naturally gases can be liquefied at low temperatures, and metals lose electrical resistance as they get colder (see superconductivity). Cryogenics dates from 1877, when oxygen was first cooled to the point at which it became a liquid (−297°F, or −183°C); superconductivity was discovered in 1911. Applications of cryogenics include the storage and transport of liquefied gases, food preservation, cryosurgery, rocket fuels, and superconducting electromagnets.

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cryogenics

Using materials that operate at very cold temperatures. See superconductor.

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cryogenics

the branch of physics concerned with the production of very low temperatures and the phenomena occurring at these temperatures

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cryogenics [‚krī·ə′jen·iks]

(physics)

The production and maintenance of very low temperatures, and the study of phenomena at these temperatures.

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Cryogenics

The science and technology of phenomena and processes at low temperatures, defined arbitrarily as below 150 K (-190°F). Phenomena that occur at cryogenic temperatures include liquefaction and solidification of ambient gases; loss of ductility and embrittlement of some structural materials such as carbon steel; increase in the thermal conductivity to a maximum value, followed by a decrease as the temperature is lowered further, of relatively pure metals, ionic compounds, and crystalline dielectrics (diamond, sapphire, solidified gases, and so forth); decrease in the thermal conductivity of metal alloys and plastics; decrease in the electrical resistance of relatively pure metals; decrease in the heat capacity of solids; decrease in thermal noise and disorder of matter; and appearance of quantum effects such as superconductivity and superfluidity. See Electrical resistivity, Specific heat, Superconductivity, Superfluidity, Thermal conduction in solids

Low-temperature environments are maintained with cryogens (liquefied gases) or with cryogenic refrigerators. The temperature afforded by a cryogen ranges from its triple point to slightly below its critical point. Commonly used cryogens are liquid helium-4 (down to 1 K), liquid hydrogen, and liquid nitrogen. Less commonly used because of their expense are liquid helium-3 (down to 0.3 K) and neon. The pressure maintained over a particular cryogen controls its temperature. Heat input—both the thermal load and the heat leak due to imperfect insulation—boils away the cryogen, which must be replenished. See Liquid helium, Thermodynamic processes

A variety of techniques are available for prolonged refrigeration. Down to about 1.5 K, refrigeration cycles involve compression and expansion of appropriately chosen gases. At lower temperatures, liquid and solids serve as refrigerants. Adiabatic demagnetization of paramagnetic ions in solid salts is used in magnetic refrigerators to provide temperatures from around 4 K down to 0.003 K. Nuclear spin demagnetization of copper can achieve 5 × 10^-8 K. Helium-3/helium-4 dilution refrigerators are frequently used for cooling at temperatures between 0.3 and 0.002 K, and adiabatic compression of helium-3 (Pomeranchuk cooling) can create temperatures down to 0.001 K. See Adiabatic demagnetization

Both the latent heat of vaporization and the sensible heat of the gas (heat content of the gas) must be removed to liquefy a gas. Of the total heat that must be removed to liquefy the gas, the latent heat is only 1.3% for helium and 46% for nitrogen. Consequently, an efficient liquefier must supply refrigeration over the entire temperature range between ambient and the liquefaction point, not just at the liquefaction temperature. The Collins-Claude refrigeration cycle forms the basis (with a multitude of variations) of most modern cryogenic liquefiers. Gas is compressed isothermally and cooled in a counterflow heat exchanger by the colder return stream of low-pressure gas. During this cooling, a fraction of the high-pressure stream (equal to the rate of liquefaction) is split off and cooled by the removal of work (energy) in expansion engines or turbines. This arrangement provides the cooling for the removal of the sensible heat. At the end of the counterflow cooling, the remaining high-pressure stream is expanded in either a Joule-Thomson valve or a wet expander to give the liquid product and the return stream of saturated vapor. See Liquefaction of gases

The work input required to produce refrigeration is commonly given in terms of watts of input power per watt of cooling, that is, W/W. Cooling with a refrigerator is more efficient (that is, requires a lower W/W) than cooling with evaporating liquid supplied from a Dewar because the refrigerator does not discard the cooling available in the boil-off gas.

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Cryogenics

The science and technology of phenomena and processes at low temperatures, defined arbitrarily as below 150 K (-190°F). Phenomena that occur at cryogenic temperatures include liquefaction and solidification of ambient gases; loss of ductility and embrittlement of some structural materials such as carbon steel; increase in the thermal conductivity to a maximum value, followed by a decrease as the temperature is lowered further, of relatively pure metals, ionic compounds, and crystalline dielectrics (diamond, sapphire, solidified gases, and so forth); decrease in the thermal conductivity of metal alloys and plastics; decrease in the electrical resistance of relatively pure metals; decrease in the heat capacity of solids; decrease in thermal noise and disorder of matter; and appearance of quantum effects such as superconductivity and superfluidity.

Low-temperature environments are maintained with cryogens (liquefied gases) or with cryogenic refrigerators. The temperature afforded by a cryogen ranges from its triple point to slightly below its critical point. Commonly used cryogens are liquid helium-4 (down to 1 K), liquid hydrogen, and liquid nitrogen. Less commonly used because of their expense are liquid helium-3 (down to 0.3 K) and neon. The pressure maintained over a particular cryogen controls its temperature. Heat input—both the thermal load and the heat leak due to imperfect insulation—boils away the cryogen, which must be replenished. See Thermodynamic processes

A variety of techniques are available for prolonged refrigeration. Down to about 1.5 K, refrigeration cycles involve compression and expansion of appropriately chosen gases. At lower temperatures, liquid and solids serve as refrigerants. Adiabatic demagnetization of paramagnetic ions in solid salts is used in magnetic refrigerators to provide temperatures from around 4 K down to 0.003 K. Nuclear spin demagnetization of copper can achieve 5 × 10^-8 K. Helium-3/helium-4 dilution refrigerators are frequently used for cooling at temperatures between 0.3 and 0.002 K, and adiabatic compression of helium-3 (Pomeranchuk cooling) can create temperatures down to 0.001 K.

Both the latent heat of vaporization and the sensible heat of the gas (heat content of the gas) must be removed to liquefy a gas. Of the total heat that must be removed to liquefy the gas, the latent heat is only 1.3% for helium and 46% for nitrogen. Consequently, an efficient liquefier must supply refrigeration over the entire temperature range between ambient and the liquefaction point, not just at the liquefaction temperature. The Collins-Claude refrigeration cycle forms the basis (with a multitude of variations) of most modern cryogenic liquefiers. Gas is compressed isothermally and cooled in a counterflow heat exchanger by the colder return stream of low-pressure gas. During this cooling, a fraction of the high-pressure stream (equal to the rate of liquefaction) is split off and cooled by the removal of work (energy) in expansion engines or turbines. This arrangement provides the cooling for the removal of the sensible heat. At the end of the counterflow cooling, the remaining high-pressure stream is expanded in either a Joule-Thomson valve or a wet expander to give the liquid product and the return stream of saturated vapor. See Liquefaction of gases

The work input required to produce refrigeration is commonly given in terms of watts of input power per watt of cooling, that is, W/W. Cooling with a refrigerator is more efficient (that is, requires a lower W/W) than cooling with evaporating liquid supplied from a Dewar because the refrigerator does not discard the cooling available in the boil-off gas. See Refrigeration, Refrigeration cycle, Thermodynamic cycle