Winemakers are artists who have harnessed the science of fermentation to turn humble grape juice into the nectar of the gods. Vinification, the art of winemaking, has been around for millennia. Vintners soon realized that temperature dramatically affects the quality of the finished wine. They built elaborate wine cellars or used natural caves to create a uniform chilled environment to control the fermentation temperature. Temperature control is critical to the winemaking process from when the must (juice) exits the press through fermentation, aging, and bottling. A wine that ferments at too high a temperature can taste cooked, and the yeast […]
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Satellite Space Simulation with Pressure Vessel Cooling
“Space… the final frontier.” Every Star Trek fan knows the starting monologue to the show and the movies. However, the “final frontier” of the near-earth orbit has become a satellite parking lot, crowded with over 6,540 satellites of all sizes. And that’s just the beginning. SpaceX’s Starlink project plans to add 7,518 more satellites. They hold the record of sending up 143 satellites in one flight in January 2021. Each satellite weighs 590 pounds and costs $250,000. Building a satellite can cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Launching one can cost from $20 million to $200 million depending on the […]
Closed Loop Chillers
What Are Closed-Loop Chillers? Closed-loop chillers are used to exchange heat from industrial or commercial applications by running coolant through a closed-loop system. These chillers use various kinds of coolant, including water, glycol and oil-based coolants. Many processes today rely on chiller systems that are closed-loop. For example, data servers run by large tech companies rely on air conditioning and water chillers to draw away heat generated by powerful electronic equipment. Both the air conditioner and water chillers are closed-loop systems due to the fact that they recycle the air and water used to extract heat. The air conditioner reuses […]
Semiconductor Cooling
Semiconductors are used in just about every computing device we use today. But how do semiconductors work? In order to understand semiconductor devices, we first need to review what a semiconductor is at the atomic level.
Keeping Carboys Cool
Carboys are really nothing fancy: just a large plastic or glass container, usually with a narrow neck and opening. It’s what’s on the inside that’s important. Carboys are often used in lab settings to store ionized water and solvents and in brewing for fermentation. In each of these applications, carboys may require some assistance in keeping their contents cool. While there are several cooling methods to choose from, some are easier to use and more precise than others. What is a carboy? A carboy, also called a demijohn, is a large glass or plastic container with a narrow neck. These […]
