Cryogenic Grinding

Presented by
Arjun Singh Patel
17ME4114
CONTENTS

 Introduction
 What is Cryogenics
 Application of Cryogenics
 Cryogenic Grinding Technology
 Application of Cryogenic Grinding
 Problems with Conventional Grinding
 Future Prospects
Introduction

 The word cryogenics stems from Greek κρύο (cryo) – "cold" + γονική (genic) – "having
to do with production".
 Cryogenics is the production and behavior of materials at very low temperature.
 It deals with low temperatures as low as below −150 °C or 123 K.
 There are several cryogenic liquids such as Nitrogen, helium, neon, argon, krypton,
hydrogen, methane and liquefied natural gas etc.
 Liquid Nitrogen are the most commonly used.
 Cryogens are stored in vessels called as Dewar flask or vacuum flask which provides
good insulation.
Cryogenic fluids
Fluid Boiling point (K)
Hydrogen 20.27
Neon 27.09
Nitrogen 77.36
Air 78.8
Fluorine 85.24
Argon 87.24
Oxygen 90.18
Methane 111.7
APPLICATION OF CRYOGENICS

 In biology for preservation and in treatment of diseases

 In food industry for food handling and processing
 In nuclear physics
 Metal fabrication
 Blood banking
 Rocket propellants. These include liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen, and liquid methane
 Electric power transmission
CRYOGENIC GRINDING TECHNOLOGY

 Cryogenic grinding also known as freezer milling, freezer grinding, and cryomilling is
the act of cooling or chilling a material and then reducing it into a small particle size.
 All materials embrittle when exposed to low temperature.
 Also a method of powdering herbs at sub-zero temperatures ranging from 0 to -70°F.
 Utilizes the cooling effect of liquid nitrogen to embrittle materials prior to and or during
the grinding process.
 Materials which are elastic in nature, having low melting points, low combustion
temperatures , sensitive to oxygen can be ideally machined by cryogenic grinding
process.
CRYOGENIC GRINDING
ADVANTAGES OF CRYOGRINDING

 Higher retention of etheric oils

 Prevention of oxidation and rancidity
 Lower energy consumption
 Finer particle size
 Specific energy consumption and energy constants were also found lower in cryogenic
grinding than ambient grinding
 Highest specific energy consumption was for ambient grinding of black pepper (202.17
(kWh/ton) and that of lowest for cryogenic grinding of fenugreek (14.43 kWh/ton)
 Reduction in microbial load
DISADVANTAGES OF CRYOGRINDING

 The application of cryogen in moist atmosphere may cause formation of ice around the
delivery nozzle and the piping system carrying the cryogen. This may cause a possible
blockage in the delivery system of liquid nitrogen.
 Cryogenic storage tanks must be able to withstand high pressure. High-
pressure propellant tanks require thicker walls and stronger alloys.
 cryogenic fuels, like LNG, are naturally combustible. Ignition of fuel spills could result
in a large explosion.
APPLICATIONS OF CRYOGENIC
GRINDING
 CryoGrinding of steel
 Thermoplastics
 Thermo sets
 Adhesives & Waxes
 Explosives (TNT)
 Spices
SPICES

 Spices like Pepper, cinnamon, chilly, Ginger, Cumin seed, Nutmeg, clove etc. have a
characteristic taste and aroma and medicinal values.
 These qualities exist in them due to the presence of etheric oils within it. (boiling points
ranging down to 50oC)
In case of conventional grinding
 temperature in the grinding zone rises to more than 90℃ resulting in loss of etheric oils
whose boiling point ranges down to 50℃. This results in the inferior quality of the
ground product.
 Spices like nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, etc. contain high level of fat while capsicum,
chili, etc. contain high moisture content. These cause clogging and gumming of mill
thus affecting the throughput and quality of the ground product. High moisture content
materials often stick to the parts of the mill.
Market and Growth Drivers

 India contributes 75% of global spice production.

 India is the largest producer and exporter of range of raw and processed spices. India
leads in Cumin, Chilly and Turmeric production in the world. Total spices export from
India stood at 947,790 tones valued at US$ 2.63 billion in the year 2016-17, registering
a year-on-year growth of 6 per cent in value terms.
FUTURE PROSPECTS

 As the cost of raw materials and energy is increasing day by day, it is very necessary to
use optimum quantity and at the same time getting the required quality.
 By using CryoGrinding technology these aspects can be met efficiently. By using this
we can also recycle tough and composite materials.
 It has many significant advantages over conventional grinding. This also leads to value
addition to the product. CryoGrinding is economically viable, if liquid nitrogen costs
are not formidable.