Cryotank

Cryotanks at the Institute of Plant Industry, Saint Petersburg, Russia.

Cryotank or cryogenic tank is a tank that is used to store frozen biological material.[1]

Cryotanks and cryogenics can be seen in many sci-fi movies but today, it is still an up and rising technology. The term “cryotank” refers to storage of super-cold fuels, such as liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. The premise of it seems very simple. All that needs to be done is for a human to be loaded into the tank and then they can be frozen until a time comes when any diseases they have can be cured and they can live an even longer life. This could also be used in space travel and just preserving human life in general. The problem with this is when the human body is frozen, ice crystals form in the cells. The ice crystals then continue to expand rupturing the cell wall and destroying the integrity of the cell, or killing it.[2]

This means in order for humans to undergo the cryogenic process a way to significantly raise the levels of glucose produced in the human body is needed.

In fiction

Cryogenic Tanks are used to store natural gases such as oxygen, argon, nitrogen, helium and other materials. By putting them in these tanks they can be stored at the correct temperature and pressure to be transported to different areas that need them for use.[3][4]

In science fiction

In science fiction, it is used to freeze people. (cry- is a Greek prefix which means "cold or freezing") So people are stored in the tank frozen to come out in the future. Cryotanks are found in some science fiction films such as Prometheus (2012) and The Host (2013).

See also

References

  1. ↑ Kopenkoskey, Paul R. (2 January 2012). "Michigan Blood reaches milestone with delivery of donated umbilical cord blood". Michigan Live. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
  2. ↑ You put antifreeze inside your car, so even though outside, everything can be frozen solid, but inside your car liquids still flow normally and so your car still runs. In the same way, glucose is an antifreeze for frogs and certain fish that their bodies could still be in liquid form with blood circulating even though they are frozen solid on the outside.
  3. ↑ "Cryogenic Vessels". Prentex Alloy Fabricators Inc. 2005. Retrieved 16 May 2012.
  4. ↑ "Technology". NASA. 31 October 2012. Retrieved 16 May 2012.

External links

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