Cryogenics



cryogenics is the study of the production and behavior of materials at very low temperatures. Someone who studies this field of expertise is known as a cryogenicist. cryogenics is implemented in many ways that may or may not affect our lives. Scientists are trying to implement cryogenics into their studies to improve their experiments. Some ways cryogenics can be used are to preserve human tissues, bacteria and even foods. When it comes to humans, cryogenics is able to preserve the human organs and tissues until one day scientists are able to figure out a way to bring the patients back to life.

There are many branches of cryogenics that study different ways of how cryofreezing can and will affect the planet. Some examples of other branches are Cryoelectronics, which is used to study electricity at low temperatures and another branch is cryosurgery which is the implication of cold temperatures in surgery.

Cryobiology
Cryobilolgy is a branch of Cryogenics that has to do with the study of how the temperature can affect living things within Earth's cryosphere. Scientist use cryobiology to study the abnormal temperatures and how it affects the materials on earth. Many branches of cryobiology are also studied such as adaption of micro organisms in cold temperatures, cryopreservation of cells and other living organisms, and the physics of super-cooling and mechanical engineering aspects of heat transfer during cooling and warming. Several of these topics require Cryogenics to function at their full potential. Scientists have experimented with many bacteria and plants with cryopreservation to understand the time and chemical activity going on when frozen for a prolonged time.

Cryobiology can be dated back to as early as 2500 B.C. People in Egypt used low temperatures as a source of medicine. They used the cold to stop or postpone bleeding or swelling. Robert Boyle was the first to study cold temperatures on living organisms. In 1964 Christopher Polge was the first scientist to cryopreserve bull semen. This discovery led to a much wider study of cryopreservation and eventually led to the preservation of organs in liquid nitrogen. Scientists have enabled cryobiology for humans and aloud cryopreservation for humans as well. Cryopreservation of humans involves the freezing of sperm and embryos to postpone the process of life.

Cryosurgery
Cryosurgery is the use of extreme cold for surgery to remove dead or diseased tissue. This type of surgery has been used to treat a number of skin diseases. Many cancers and warts are treated by this surgery. Including some internal cancers such as liver, prostate and lung cancers. Almost all cancers and other problems able to be reached by cryoprobes are able to be treated. The destructive force of cold temperatures on cells is what causes cryosurgery to be so useful. The low temperatures cause ice crystals to form on the cells and end up tearing them apart.

A very common way of cryosurgery is using liquid nitrogen to freeze the treated area. The area could be sprayed with the nitrogen through a cryoprobe or simply dabbed on by a cotton swab. Carbon dioxide is also another way of treating diseased or dead skin. Recent technological advances have aloud scientists to control argon gas to shape ice in a principal known as Joule-Thompson effect. This procedure gives scientist huge control over ice for small and precise surgeries.

Cryonics
Cryonics is the study and actual preservation of humans, who cannot be sustained by regular medicine, in an ultra cool chamber with the chance of resuscitation and restoration to full health in the near future. Once done, cryopreservation of humans cannot be undone. Cryonics is based off the belief that death is a process rather than an event. Doctors can diagnose someone as a clinical death which is a prognosis of death and no an official death. These procedures cannot begin until the doctors have legally diagnosed the body as dead. Cryonic procedures usually immediately begin minutes after death and are covered by cryoprotectants to prevent ice from forming on the body.

Cost fro cryonics can and may include payment for medical personnel to be on call for the verification of death as well as transportation. Payment for the indefinite storage inside liquid nitrogen is also included. As of five years ago, initial cost for all of this can range from twenty eight thousand dollars to over two hundred thousand dollars. For caution scientists gradually lower the temperature until it reaches -130 degrees Celsius so that the cells inside the human body will only become dehydrated and not form ice crystals on them. without cryoprotection the bodies cells have a chance of bursting.

Uses
Many liquefied gases are used in the implication of cryogenics. Liquid helium in the most commonly used liquid gas out of all other gases. This gas is used to attain the lowest possible temperatures. All cold liquids are stored in tubes called Dewar flasks, which are double walled tubes with a high vacuum between the walls to reduce heat transfer in the liquid. Cryogenics didn't come into play until World War two, when scientists found out low temperature liquids can preserve and contain living things. Scientists originally used cryogenics to increase the life expectancy of metal tools by cryogenic tempering them instead of heat tempering them.

Another use of cryogenics is using them for fuels for rockets and other scientific purposes. Liquid nitrogen is used more as an oxidizer than anything else. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMR) is another commonly used method that has cryogenics implemented in its system. NMR is used to determine the physical and chemical properties of atoms. Liquid helium is used to cool the coils inside of the machine. Other machines that use liquid nitrogen to cool their insides are the MRI and electric power transmissions. Cryogenic gases can also be used in the distribution and transportation of frozen foods.

Video
Dr, Michio talks about Cryogenics eUjWcOGb8AE