X-Message-Number: 25361 From: Date: Sun, 19 Dec 2004 16:09:09 EST Subject: cryostats Yvan Bozzonetti asks about the mechanics of building cryostats, saying he wants one (?) for animals. I won't go into detail here, except to say that ordinary boat type fiberglass is not suitable, or at least was not last time I looked. For example, polyester fiberglass--the type most commonly used in the past--will crack in liquid nitrogen, hence cannot be used for the inner container, which we used to make of epoxy fiberglass. Our current ones, however, use a newer type for both inner and outer containers. Andy Zawacki can provide more detail if desired. More generally, it seems to me not likely to be an efficient use of time or money to make them yourself. (There are also some hazards, especially allergies.) You should buy them--in your own country if possible, imported if necessary. We (CI) no longer do our own fabrication, but outsource them. If the animals you plan to use are smallish--say cat-sized or smaller--you can usually buy a new or used hard-vacuum type for a few thousand, big enough for several animals. Of course, the main question is why you want your own cryostats. I can't think of any current scenario in which it makes sense to try for a local or private storage capability. Robert Ettinger Content-Type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" [ AUTOMATICALLY SKIPPING HTML ENCODING! ] Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=25361