Cryogenic grinding – Freezer/Mill®
Cryogenic grinding with the Freezer Mill from Cole Parmer. The Freezer Mill grinds samples with liquid nitrogen and makes a difference especially for soft, sticky, tough, smearing and fibrous samples or for samples whose composition or structure changes due to the heat created by conventional grinding.
The mill is programmable and stores up to 20 user-defined grinding programs.
Because breaking up is hard to do…
Functioning
The sample is introduced into a special fully sealable Grinding Vial and immersed in liquid nitrogen, reaching cryogenic temperatures. The sample is then pulverized by a magnetic impacter that is struck back and forth against two stationary end plugs of the vial by induction. Because the vial is immersed in liquid nitrogen throughout the grinding cycle and thus reaches cryogenic temperatures, the important properties of the sample are preserved.
Polyethylene granules
Ground Polyethylene granules
Potato
Ground potato
Since the vial is sealed, the integrity of the contents remains intact; hazardous or critical samples can therefore be easily processed. Cleaning is simplified and cross-contamination is eliminated.
These features make the Cole Parmer Freezer/Mills ‘s among the world’s most effective cryogenic grinders.
Fun fact: the Freezer Mill was used in the TV series CSI Miami to grind teeth before analyzing them. See clips of this in the clips below.
There are 3 types of Freezer/Mills available. Scroll further down for information on these types. Which type is suitable for your application depends, among other things, on the size of the sample and the number of samples you want to pulverize.
| Freezer/Mill | Microvial, set of 3 (0.1G – 0.5G each) | Small Vial (0.1G – 5G | Medium Vial (1 – 40G) | Large Vial (1 – 100G) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CG-200 Freezer/Mill (formerly type 6775) | 1 set (3 total) | 1 | N/A | N/A |
| CG-400 Freezer/Mill (formerly type 6875) | 4 sets (12 total) | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| CG-500 Freezer/Mill (formerly type 6875D) | 8 sets (24 total) | 8 | 2 | 2 |
CG-200 Freezer/Mill® (formerly known as type 6775)
A small cryogenic grinder with an integrated liquid nitrogen reservoir and insulated housing that processes samples between 0.1 – 5 grams. It is specifically designed for cryogenically grinding and pulverizing tough and/or temperature-sensitive samples in a sealed vial that remains immersed in liquid nitrogen.
- Via Touch Screen storage up to 20, user-defined, grinding programs that are easy and quick to recall. Also included are history of runs, training videos, manuals and accessores.
- Grinds samples between 0.1 – 5 grams. Grinding chamber holds one microvial set or one small grinding vial.
- Grinding Vials Sets are available in a variety of materials, including polycarbonate, stainless state and Cr-free state.
- liquid nitrogen is required
CG-400 Freezer/Mill® (formerly known as type 6875)
A larger cryogenic grinder with an integrated liquid nitrogen reservoir and insulated housing. Optional automatic filling system is available to automatically fill the reservoir with liquid nitrogen. It pulverizes samples from 0.1 – 100 grams. In doing so, it uses 1 large vial, 4 small vials or 4 Microvial sets.
- Via Touch Screen storage up to 20, user-defined, grinding programs that are easy and quick to recall. Also included are history of runs, training videos, manuals and accessores.
- Grinds samples between 0.1 – 100 grams. Grinding chamber holds one microvial set or one small grinding vial.
- Grinding Vials Sets are available in a variety of materials, including polycarbonate, stainless state and Cr-free state.
- liquid nitrogen is required
CG-500 Freezer/Mill® – increased throughput (formerly known as type 6875D)
A cryogenic grinding machine for processing a larger number of samples. It features two chambers with an integrated liquid nitrogen reservoir and insulated housing. It pulverizes samples from 0.1 – 200 grams (100 per grinding chamber).
- Comes standard with an automatic filling system that automatically fills the reservoir with liquid nitrogen.
- Via Touch Screen storage up to 20, user-defined, grinding programs that are easy and quick to recall. Also included are history of runs, training videos, manuals and accessores.
- Two grinding chambers hold a total of 200 grams (2 x 100grams)
- Maintenance-free design with only one moving part.
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