Monday, November 7, 2011

Using Cryogenic Freezer Systems to Preserve Fruits and Vegetables

When people think of cryogenic freezer systems or cryogenically freezing things, they immediately think of freezing dead bodies to preserve them for the future. However, cryogenics have advanced way past common science fiction plot lines. In actuality, cryogenics help us with every-day life.

Many food distributors use cryogenic freezing to preserve fruits and vegetables. Freezing preservation is important in retaining the quality of agriculture products over long storage and shipping periods. As methods of long-term preservation of agricultural products, freezing is far superior to canning and dehydration in regards to retaining taste and nutrient properties. Cryogenic freezing is cheaper than the dehydration or canning process, while using up less resources and time. When the overall cost is considered, freezing is the most cost-effective of any method of food preservation.

The frozen food market is one of the largest and most diverse sectors of the food industry. From TV dinners to frozen strawberries, the frozen food sector has a value of more than $27.3 billion in the United States alone. To keep this business alive, cryogenic freezer systems have played a large part in the refrigeration of food products. The success of cryogenic freezing comes from the elimination of heat from low temperature points towards points with higher temperatures. The cryogenic system achieves this through the use of liquid nitrogen and carbon dioxide to keep the products frozen and unable to spoil.

Remember the next time you go grocery shopping, there's a chance that some of the food in your grocery cart are made possible through the advancements of cryogenic freezer systems.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Safely Handle a Liquid Nitrogen Dewar

Safety experts say that nitrogen, despite its inert quality, causes more fatalities than any other chemical found in laboratories. That's why it's important that your cryogenic freezer system has a high-quality, reliable liquid nitrogen dewar. Our staff at Princeton Cryo Tech will always make sure that every one of our products, including dewars, are the highest quality. It's the best way we can help avoid catastrophic events occurring in a laboratory.

When a person is surrounded in a purely nitrogen atmosphere, oxygen flow is reversed from the arterial blood and tissues back into the lungs, causing unconsciousness. This is a very dangerous situation and similar effects can occur when working with liquid nitrogen in a laboratory setting. Liquid nitrogen chilled vapor collects near the floor, but can still cause unconsciousness after inhaling the vapor. Interestingly, though, over half of workers who die in confined spaces are attempting to rescue unconscious workers. So not only are the unconscious in danger, so are the people who try to help them.

If you work with nitrogen in your lab, it's important to have up-to-date safety meetings. In addition to meetings, training should take place, along with maintaining the best quality liquid nitrogen containers and equipment. Princeton Cryo makes sure that all of our products, like a liquid nitrogen dewar, will prevent laboratory accidents.

Dewars are designed for storing and dispensing liquid nitrogen. They are easy to operate and are constructed of high-quality materials. For more safety insurance, laboratories should be equipped with high-quality cryo gloves while keeping employees informed of all the proper safety techniques when handling these dangerous chemicals. Most of all make sure you have a reliable liquid nitrogen dewar from Princeton Cryo.