How Does Dry Ice Work?
Dry ice has many uses, both practical and fun, but how exactly does it work?
As you can tell from our extensively informative series, Unusual Dry Ice Uses, dry ice is a very versatile and useful product. That’s the easy part to understand. The harder part is understanding exactly how dry ice works, and the science behind it. It’s “ice,” but it doesn’t melt. It’s incredibly cold, to the point of being dangerous. But why?! How does dry ice work?! Luckily, your dry ice professionals are here to explain.
How Do You Make Dry Ice?
Spoiler alert: not in an ice cube tray in your freezer. A block of dry ice has a surface temperature around -109°F, which is about, oh, 109°F cooler than your typical kitchen freezer. Instead, dry ice is made by compressing carbon dioxide gas. There are recipes out there for homemade dry ice, just be super careful and always follow safety precautions if you want to give it a try.
Why Won’t It Melt?
When you go to the beach, you bring a cooler, packed full of ice. After a couple hours you end up with a cooler packed full of water. That science is easy. So why is it that dry ice doesn’t melt into a puddle? This is where that “dry” part comes in. Instead of melting, dry ice goes through a process called “sublimation,” where it goes straight from a solid state to a gaseous state. Because of this, dry ice is preferred for shipping perishable goods because it won’t leak or soak the items being shipped.
Dry ice is a pretty snazzy thing, and there’s lots of practical uses for it as well as fun to be had with it. Hopefully now you’re at least a little more informed about what our worlds revolve around, and next time someone asks you, “how does dry ice work,” You’ll be able to tell them! Happy freezing!
Dry Ice Corp: A Dry Ice Supplier in Maryland
Dry Ice Corp is the largest regional supplier of dry ice products and customized delivery services in the Northeastern United States, from Virginia all the way up to Maine. And because our dry ice is supplied by manufacturing plants located right here in the Northeast, we can guarantee freshness. Other suppliers, meanwhile, get their dry ice from manufacturing plants as much as 1,000 miles away, which has a direct impact on product freshness. Ready to get your dry ice? Click here!
Dry Ice Corp provides the highest levels of service and freshest dry ice products.
Contact Dry Ice Corp for a FREE Quote!
If you have any questions about using Dry Ice to ship seafood, please contact Dry Ice Corp by calling 201.767.3200. You can also connect with Dry Ice Corp on Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and Pinterest.
