Cryogenic Storage Research Articles

Generating high-quality plant and fish reference genomes from field-collected specimens by optimizing preservation

Sample preservation often impedes efforts to generate high-quality reference genomes or pangenomes for Earth’s more than 2 million plant and animal species due to nucleotide degradation. Here we compare the impacts of storage methods including solution type, temperature, and time on DNA quality and Oxford Nanopore long-read sequencing quality in 9 fish and 4 plant species. We show 95% ethanol largely protects against degradation for fish blood (22 °C, ≤6 weeks) and plant tissue (4 °C, ≤3 weeks). From this furthest storage timepoint, we assemble high-quality reference genomes of 3 fish and 2 plant species with contiguity (contig N50) and completeness (BUSCO) that achieve the Vertebrate Genome Project benchmarking standards. For epigenetic applications, we also report methylation frequency compared to liquid nitrogen control. The results presented here remove the necessity for cryogenic storage in many long read applications and provide a framework for future studies focused on sampling in remote locations, which may represent a large portion of the future sequencing of novel organisms.

Performance analysis of a hybrid system combining cryogenic separation carbon capture and liquid air energy storage (CS-LAES)

Cryogenic separation carbon capture is a promising green carbon emission reduction approach, which is rarely applied due to its high cold energy requirement. This work proposes a hybrid system combining cryogenic separation carbon capture and liquid air energy storage (CS-LAES), comprehensively utilizing low-temperature and high-pressure conditions of LAES to reduce the energy consumption of cryogenic CO2 separation. Flue gas with higher carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations from coal-fired power plants is compressed in the charging process of CS-LAES instead of air. The CO2 is captured, and the CO2-free air is liquefied and stored for later use. The results demonstrate that the carbon capture energy consumption of the CS-LAES system is 1.12 GJ/ton, which is 0.68 GJ/ton lower than that of conventional cryogenic capture technology (1.80 GJ/ton). The CO2 capture rate of 99.97 % is higher than that of most existing cryogenic CO2 capture technologies. Moreover, the standalone total exergy efficiency (S_TEE) for energy storage of the CS-LAES system was 63.40 %, which is 5.22 % higher than the baseline LAES. Meanwhile, the dynamic payback period of the CS-LAES system is 5.82 years, which is more economical than that of baseline LAES (12.89 years) due to avoiding expensive carbon tax.

Thermodynamic and economic analyses of the integrated cryogenic energy storage and gas power plant system

Thermodynamic and economic analyses of the integrated cryogenic energy storage and gas power plant system

Thermal stratification and self-pressurization in a cryogenic propellant storage tank considering capillary effect in low-gravity

Thermal stratification and self-pressurization in a cryogenic propellant storage tank considering capillary effect in low-gravity

20 years in enzymatic isolation and cryogenic preservation of human hepatocytes

20 years in enzymatic isolation and cryogenic preservation of human hepatocytes

Cryogenic preservation of perinatal stem cells in ME2so -supplemented and me2so -free conditions

Cryogenic preservation of perinatal stem cells in ME2so -supplemented and me2so -free conditions

Examination of cryogenic durability in self-consolidating concretes through mechanical and fracture mechanics approaches

Thermal shocks under extreme conditions, such as leakage in concrete-enclosed tanks, which are a popular choice for cryogenic liquid storage, may lead to undesirable effects on the structures. In this study, the effects of cyclic cryogenic exposures have been investigated using both mechanical and fracture mechanics approaches. To ensure durable concrete, self-consolidating concretes have been chosen in the mix design. While previous studies have primarily investigated the effects of a single cryogenic exposure on conventional concrete, this study focuses on repetitive exposure to cryogenic effects on self-consolidating concretes. Furthermore, the self-consolidating concretes were subjected to two different curing conditions: air curing and water curing, before cryogenic processing, in order to consider real application conditions and laboratory circumstances. After the first and fifth cryogenic exposures, fundamental engineering properties and fracture mechanics parameters were evaluated. To determine the fracture mechanics parameters, beams of three different dimensions were produced, with three different notch lengths for each dimension. The dynamic modulus of elasticity, ultrasonic pulse velocity, compressive strength, and bending strength of self-consolidating concretes were examined after 0, 1, and 5 cycles of cryogenic exposure. As a result, the air-cured samples exhibited greater resistance to cryogenic cycles than the water-cured samples. The KIC and CTODC values increased after one cycle of cryogenic exposure, as noted in the literature. However, the results obtained in this study demonstrate a decrease in KIC and CTODC values after five cycles compared to one cycle of cryogenic exposure.

Visualization study on double-diffusive convection during a rollover in liquid energy storage tanks

The growing global energy consumption and the transition to the renewable era highlight the urgent need for safe and energy-efficient liquid energy storage tanks. Rollover has been a severe hazard to the efficiency and safety of the storage tank accompanied by significantly enhanced mass and heat transport across the stratified layers, and rapid evaporation and mixing of the layers happen. However there is a lack of experiments sophistically designed for cryogenic storage applications, which leads to a lack of visualized and quantitative experimental data to understand the physics of rollover in energy storage tanks. In this study, a Z-type Schlieren system is established to visually reveal the double-diffusive convection patterns in a cylindrical experimental chamber. The concentrations of salt-water solutions are adjusted to simulate the density difference between the multi-component cryogenic fluids. Cross-correlation algorithm is adopted to analyze the transient velocity distributions in the stratified system. The rollover process is divided into four stages, namely the initial, transition, mixing, and stable stages. Effects of heat flux, concentration difference, and heating location on the rollover characteristics are parametrically investigated. Correlations are proposed with rescaled buoyancy ratio and density gradient, and satisfactory agreement with experimental data is achieved.

Natural convection effects in insulation layers of spherical cryogenic storage tanks

Natural convection effects in the insulation layers of spherical storage tanks are studied for different cryogenic fluids and tank sizes or curvatures. The non-vacuum-based insulation layers of these tanks are made of gas-filled porous materials such as perlite or glass bubbles. The large temperature difference that can exist between the inner cold wall and outer hot wall may create convective patterns with a multi-cellular flow within the insulation-filled annulus and lead to a higher boil-off rate and cryo-pumping effects. A main objective in the design of these systems is the elimination of the convective patterns by a proper choice of insulation properties. This work examines the impact of the insulation permeability or the Rayleigh number (Ra) on the type of convective flows for liquified natural gas (LNG) and liquid hydrogen (LH2) spherical storage tanks. Bifurcation diagrams of possible solutions are generated by numerical solutions of the governing equations at different Ra numbers. It is found that as Ra increases, new convective cells emerge near the south pole of the insulation layer due to unstable density stratification and lead to the distortion of isotherms, bringing the cold boundary towards the external hot boundary. When the temperature difference is large as in the case of LNG and LH2 tanks, there exist regions of multiple solutions in which multi-cell convective solutions may co-exist with a crescent-shaped weakly convective solution. In order to eliminate the possibility of multi-cell convection, inversion of the cold boundary, and reduce the boil-off rate, the Ra value of the insulation system should be below the limit point of the convective branch.

Kinetic rate coefficients for electron-driven collisions with CH+: dissociative recombination and rovibronic excitation

ABSTRACT Cross-sections and rate coefficients for rovibronic excitation of the CH+ ion by electron impact and dissociative recombination of CH+ with electrons are evaluated using a theoretical approach combining an R-matrix method and molecular quantum defect theory. The method has been developed and tested, comparing the theoretical results with the data from the recent Cryogenic Storage Ring experiment. The obtained cross-sections and rate coefficients evaluated for temperatures from 1 to 10 000 K could be used for plasma modelling in the interpretation of astrophysical observations and also in the technological applications where the molecular hydrocarbon plasma is present.

Production of Biosynthesized Silver Nanoparticles using Metarhizium anisopliae fungus for the Treatment of Petroleum Pollutants in Water

In this study, a silver nanoparticle (AgNPs) was created using a biological technique from an extract of the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. The characteristics of the prepared AgNPs were identified by utilizing the optical, ultraviolet, and infrared absorbance spectroscopy. The shape, size, and charge distribution on the particles were determined by using scanning electron microscopy and zeta voltage analysis. The analysis of biological activity of the silver nanoparticles showed its effectiveness in treating pollutants, as confirmed by the reduction of higher than 93% weight of crude oil in contaminated water samples. The crude oil mass was effectively transformed into the gelatinous mass that lacks consistency and emulsification. The chemical analysis of NP-treated and untreated crude oil- contaminated water samples was performed using gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC MASS). The results displayed the emergence of 55 graphic peaks, each of them indicating a chemical compound, in the control sample, while in the study sample, about 51 of these peaks disappeared and the area of the remaining 4 peaks was reduced. The silver nanoparticles' capability to maintain their effectiveness under cryogenic storage conditions for six months was tested and compared to that of the fungal isolation before the production of the silver nanoparticles. The results showed no significant changes in the shape, size, and efficiency of the silver nanoparticles in the treatment of oil pollutants in water. The results indicated the higher efficiency of the silver nanoparticles, as compared to chemicals, in treating petroleum pollutants as well as enhancing the solubility, emulsification, and degradation of hydrocarbons. In addition, the AgNPs are characterized by the availability of inexpensive, easy, fast to produce, and environmentally friendly production materials, as compared to the usage of chemical products that are highly toxic to aquatic organisms, expensive to produce, and highly accumulative in the ecosystem, i.e. environmentally unsafe.

Hazard footprint of alternative fuel storage concepts for hydrogen-powered urban buses

Hydrogen mobility is a powerful strategy to fight climate change promoting the decarbonization of the transportation sector. However, the higher flammability of hydrogen in comparison with traditional fuels raises issues concerning the safety of hydrogen-powered vehicles, in particular when urban mobility in crowded areas is concerned. In the present study, a comparative analysis of alternative hydrogen storage concepts for buses is carried out. A specific inherent safety assessment methodology providing a hazard footprint of alternative hydrogen storage technologies was developed. The approach provides a set of ex-ante safety performance indicators and integrates a sensitivity analysis performed by a Monte Carlo method. Integral models for consequence analysis and a set of baseline frequencies are used to provide a preliminary identification of the worst-case credible fire and explosion scenarios and to rank the inherent safety of alternative concepts. Cryo-compressed storage in the supercritical phase resulted as the more hazardous storage concept, while cryogenic storage in the liquid phase at ambient pressure scored the highest safety performance. The results obtained support risk-informed decision-making in the shift towards the promotion of sustainable mobility in urban areas.

Alternative Gaseous Fuels for Marine Vessels towards Zero-Carbon Emissions

The maritime industry is recognized as a major pollution source to the environment. The use of low- or zero-carbon marine alternative fuel is a promising measure to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and toxic pollutants, leading to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Hydrogen (H2), fuel cells particularly proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), and ammonia (NH3) are screened out to be the feasible marine gaseous alternative fuels. Green hydrogen can reduce the highest carbon emission, which might amount to 100% among those 5 types of hydrogen. The main hurdles to the development of H2 as a marine alternative fuel include its robust and energy-consuming cryogenic storage system, highly explosive characteristics, economic transportation issues, etc. It is anticipated that fossil fuel used for 35% of vehicles such as marine vessels, automobiles, or airplanes will be replaced with hydrogen fuel in Europe by 2040. Combustible NH3 can be either burned directly or blended with H2 or CH4 to form fuel mixtures. In addition, ammonia is an excellent H2 carrier to facilitate its production, storage, transportation, and usage. The replacement of promising alternative fuels can move the marine industry toward decarbonization emissions by 2050.

Improving the practicality of recombinant Escherichia coli biosensor in detecting trace Cr(VI) by modifying the cryogenic storage conditions of biosensors and applying simple pretreatment

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a global environmental pollutant. To reduce the risk caused by Cr(VI), a simple, accurate, reproducible, and inexpensive method for quantifying Cr(VI) in water and soil should be developed. In this study, three types of recombinant Escherichia coli biosensors (namely T7-lux-E. coli, T3-lux-E. coli, and SP6-lux-E. coli biosensor) containing promoters (T7, T3, and SP6), chromate-sensing regulator chrB, and the reporter gene luxAB were constructed. This study investigated the effects of cryogenic freezing temperature and time on trace Cr(VI) measurement by using recombinant E. coli biosensors. The results indicated that the activity of thawed frozen SP6-lux-E. coli cells stored at −20 °C for 270 days did not differ from that of freshly prepared cells. Turbidity and conductivity in water samples and organic matter in soil interfered with Cr(VI) measurement using the biosensor. The SP6-lux-E. coli biosensor exhibited a wide measurement range and a low deviation of <5% for measuring Cr(VI) in various Cr(VI)-contaminated water and soil samples and required only a simple pretreatment or extraction process even after 270-day storage at −20 °C. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report the use of recombinant biosensors for accurately measuring Cr(VI) in both water and soil.

Coexisting with Ice Crystals: Cryogenic Preservation of Muscle Food─Mechanisms, Challenges, and Cutting-Edge Strategies.

Cryopreservation, one of the most effective preservation methods, is essential for maintaining the safety and quality of food. However, there is no denying the fact that the quality of muscle food deteriorates as a result of the unavoidable production of ice. Advancements in cryoregulatory materials and techniques have effectively mitigated the adverse impacts of ice, thereby enhancing the standard of freezing preservation. The first part of this overview explains how ice forms, including the theoretical foundations of nucleation, growth, and recrystallization as well as the key influencing factors that affect each process. Subsequently, the impact of ice formation on the eating quality and nutritional value of muscle food is delineated. A systematic explanation of cutting-edge strategies based on nucleation intervention, growth control, and recrystallization inhibition is offered. These methods include antifreeze proteins, ice-nucleating proteins, antifreeze peptides, natural deep eutectic solvents, polysaccharides, amino acids, and their derivatives. Furthermore, advanced physical techniques such as electrostatic fields, magnetic fields, acoustic fields, liquid nitrogen, and supercooling preservation techniques are expounded upon, which effectively hinder the formation of ice crystals during cryopreservation. The paper outlines the difficulties and potential directions in ice inhibition for effective cryopreservation.

Evolution of rock heterogeneity under coupled stress-temperature gradient loading and implications for underground cryogenic storage

Underground cryogenic storage can be a critical energy infrastructure of urban cities for the survival and recovery of energy supply from severe natural disasters and extreme weather events. The efficiency of underground cryogenic storage is essential to ensure the balance between energy input and output and dependent highly on the thermo-mechanical responses of containment materials. This study investigated the evolution of strain field heterogeneity of Chanceaux limestone under the defect (e.g., circular hole) and stress-temperature gradient effects using a temperature gradient test system. We performed 4 suites of temperature gradient experiments, including the thermo-loading and thermo-unloading experiments on intact and flawed specimens, respectively, under different combinations of axial stress (0.75–3.50 MPa) and temperature gradient (56–298 °C/m), taking underground liquefied natural gas storage as the background. We computed the axial strain in the region of interest for each experiment based on the digital image correlation analysis and derived the coefficients of strain field heterogeneity in the mechanical loading and unloading sequences. The results show that the coefficient of strain field heterogeneity can be amplified with the presence of pre-existing defects, a lower axial stress, and a higher temperature gradient. Our findings highlight that understanding the evolution of rock heterogeneity is important to ensure the integrity of containment materials and the efficiency of underground cryogenic storage.

Low-temperature structural deformation and fragmentation of lead styphnate by in-situ experiments and calculation

As one of the most used pyrotechnic composites in spacecraft pyrotechnic devices, the reliability of lead styphnate (LS) in a cryogenic environment needs an adaptability evaluation before the deployment of new deep space exploration programs. Nonetheless, there is a limited understanding of the effects of low temperatures on LS. Herein, we have designed cryogenic storage experiments with a low-temperature in-situ methodology to explore the effects of low temperatures on the properties and performance of LS. By comparing the experimental data before, after storage, and at low temperatures, LS exhibited unique characteristics and failure behaviors at low temperatures than at high temperatures. After storage, the impact sensitivity of LS increased sharply due to particle fragmentation, whilst the flame sensitivity of LS decreased significantly at low temperatures. Employing in-situ powder x-ray diffraction (PXRD) characterization and ignition tests, the low-temperature ignition failure of LS is thought to be closely related to the distortion of the crystal structure of LS, resulting in a “structural shutdown” at −80 °C. Our study disclosed the properties of LS at low temperatures and provided feasible research methods for other energetic materials, aiming to prevent possible future risks and help to establish test standards at low temperatures.

Effect of distance of vertical barrier wall and release temperature on the hydrogen jet flame width and temperature distribution induced by impingement of ignited release of cryogenic hydrogen

Cryogenic storage option is one of the important ways of storing hydrogen, but under-expanded ignited releases of cryogenic hydrogen could easily lead to jet fires, causing serious damage to people and properties. Barrier walls are important means to reduce the severity of cryogenic hydrogen jet flames, however, its effect on the cryogenic hydrogen jet flame and related temperature distribution are still unclear. In this work, the effect of the distance of barrier wall (0.20, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35 and 0.40 m) and release temperature (140, 180, 220, 260 and 300 K) on the hydrogen jet flame width and temperature distribution is investigated experimentally. It is found that the flame width in the horizontal and vertical direction and the temperature on the vertical barrier wall increase with the decrease of the distance to the nozzle and release temperature. The normalized flame width and inverse excess maximum temperature on the barrier wall increases linearly with the scaled distance considering nozzle diameter and release temperature. The temperature distribution is normalized as Gaussian distribution both in the horizontal and vertical direction, while the excess temperature is higher upward than that of downward. The results can provide a theoretical basis and data support for the blocking of jet fires formed by cryogenic hydrogen ignited releases.

Thermodynamic performance of a cryogenic energy storage system based on natural gas liquefaction

Cryogenic energy storage (CES) is a viable method for grid-scale electrical energy storage. Considering the high energy density and mature application of liquefied natural gas (LNG), we proposed an LNG cryogenic energy storage (LNGES) system. A steady-state process model of the LNGES system was established using Aspen HYSYS. The effects of the natural gas composition and key operating parameters such as the charging pressure, discharging pressure, throttling temperature, and liquid storage pressure on the system performance were investigated. A multi-parameter genetic algorithm model built using the MATLAB software was used to optimize the LNGES system to optimize the round-trip efficiency (RTE). Then, an exergy analysis of the optimal configuration was conducted. The results suggested that the LNGES system could achieve optimal RTE and exergy efficiency values of 60.14% and 71.64%, respectively. Exergy destruction mainly occurred during the compression, throttling, expansion, and heat exchange. The proposed LNGES system could be a promising candidate for the large-scale application of CES technology in power grids and gas networks.

302.1: 30 years of human hepatocyte isolation and cryogenic preservation

302.1: 30 years of human hepatocyte isolation and cryogenic preservation