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GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
raddevus9-Dec-20 11:46
mvaraddevus9-Dec-20 11:46 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
Mike Hankey9-Dec-20 12:02
mveMike Hankey9-Dec-20 12:02 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
#realJSOP9-Dec-20 12:20
mve#realJSOP9-Dec-20 12:20 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
DRHuff9-Dec-20 13:49
DRHuff9-Dec-20 13:49 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
Rage9-Dec-20 20:18
professionalRage9-Dec-20 20:18 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
GenJerDan9-Dec-20 22:37
GenJerDan9-Dec-20 22:37 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
Maximilien10-Dec-20 0:28
Maximilien10-Dec-20 0:28 
GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
W Balboos, GHB10-Dec-20 3:26
W Balboos, GHB10-Dec-20 3:26 
Heat pumps (normal refrigeration) don't need to have the sink at a lower temperature than the source to keep cooling. Think of air conditioning your house: it's much hotter outside than inside but the pump still can move heat - it just gets less and less efficient (there's an equation for that).

Now, for the COVID vaccine, they temperature is that of Dry Ice (solid CO2 for the newer generations). To make it, they compress the CO2 until it liquifies and let that cool by releasing heat to the surroundings - and then they release the pressure and it gets extremely cold, much of it solidifying and the rest returning to the gas phase (now at ambient pressure). Because of this method, the solid is more like snow and is compressed into blocks (opaque white). You can do this yourself if you've a CO2 fires extinguisher to waste: if turned upside down it will attempt to empty its contents (liquefied gas under pressure) and you'll get some dry-ice snow.

At the extreme end, towards absolute zero (0K = -273C), like liquid helium at 4K, extremely compressed helium is cooled, like the routine for dry ice but cooled to liquid nitrogen temperature, above and when allowed to expand some of it liquefies. It is a particularly energy intensive process as the tiny little helium atoms have virtually no attraction towards one another (compared to any other element). It is a super-fluid and does some creepy stuff like climb out of its container. It's generally difficult to store for any period of time (and dangerous in that it's constantly boiling and creating pressure). I didn't use it but it was used by some of the chemical physicists in my lab. It was ordered so it arrived within a day of when it was needed or it would pretty much be gone. It's stored in specialized dewers (basically thermos bottles).

Ravings en masse^
"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein
"If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

GeneralRe: How do you create extremely low temperatures? Pin
Marc Clifton10-Dec-20 5:17
mvaMarc Clifton10-Dec-20 5:17 
GeneralWell, I'm at home again. Pin
OriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:18
mveOriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:18 
GeneralRe: Well, I'm at home again. Pin
Richard MacCutchan9-Dec-20 5:49
mveRichard MacCutchan9-Dec-20 5:49 
GeneralRe: Well, I'm at home again. Pin
OriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:52
mveOriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:52 
GeneralThe first shoe drops Pin
Gerry Schmitz9-Dec-20 5:10
mveGerry Schmitz9-Dec-20 5:10 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Nelek9-Dec-20 5:12
protectorNelek9-Dec-20 5:12 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
den2k889-Dec-20 5:50
professionalden2k889-Dec-20 5:50 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Slacker0079-Dec-20 7:07
professionalSlacker0079-Dec-20 7:07 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
W Balboos, GHB9-Dec-20 8:09
W Balboos, GHB9-Dec-20 8:09 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Chris Maunder9-Dec-20 11:31
cofounderChris Maunder9-Dec-20 11:31 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Nelek9-Dec-20 13:54
protectorNelek9-Dec-20 13:54 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
MarkTJohnson10-Dec-20 1:17
professionalMarkTJohnson10-Dec-20 1:17 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
MarkTJohnson10-Dec-20 1:18
professionalMarkTJohnson10-Dec-20 1:18 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Chris Maunder10-Dec-20 3:54
cofounderChris Maunder10-Dec-20 3:54 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
DerekT-P9-Dec-20 23:58
professionalDerekT-P9-Dec-20 23:58 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
OriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:19
mveOriginalGriff9-Dec-20 5:19 
GeneralRe: The first shoe drops Pin
Gerry Schmitz9-Dec-20 5:29
mveGerry Schmitz9-Dec-20 5:29 

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