The present invention relates to a process for forming a metal component (20), the process comprising the steps of heating a metal blank (20) coated with a protective layer; cooling said metal blank (20) in a confined space (14), said cooling involving cooling by means of a gas, the gas being cooled by heat exchange with a cooling surface of a heat sink (22) inside said confined space (14), wherein a low frequency sound wave is provided into said confined space (14) in order to improve heat exchange both between the gas and a cooling surface of the at least one heat sink (22), and between the gas and the metal component (20), wherein the heated coated blank is cooled to a temperature below the melting point of the protective layer, and forming the coated blank to a component. The invention also relates to a production line for performing the process.

The present invention relates to a vent pipe de-icing system that has a first external pipe, a first internal pipe, a second external pipe and a second internal pipe. The external pipes sit above the top surface of a vent pipe, and the internal pipes sit within the vent pipe. The internal pipes are connected to a hot water tank and or pump that pumps hot water or other heated fluid through the pipes such that the heated fluid exits the external pipes and falls into the inside surface of the vent pipe. In this manner, the device can be used to continuously defrost or de-ice a vent pipe and prevent ice from forming. The device can further be controlled via a mobile application, which allows a user to control when and how much fluid is pumped within the device.

A device for the thermal regulation of a battery comprising at least one energy storage cell, said device comprising a dielectric-fluid circuit, said circuit comprising irrigating means for wetting the surface of said cell with said dielectric fluid.

Aspects of the present disclosure relate to an extendable conductor assembly. A conductor of the extendable conductor assembly may be extended (e.g., into a thermal target, such as a preexisting or a newly created feature of a planetary body) and used to thermally couple a rover, vehicle, fixed installation, or other hardware with the thermal target. Thus, the temperature of the hardware may be managed via heat transfer to/from the thermal target. For instance, heat may be transferred from the thermal target to maintain the temperature of the hardware under cold conditions, while excess heat may be transferred to the thermal target under hot conditions. As an example, a rover may form a borehole in the lunar surface, in which a conductor may be extended to facilitate heat transfer between the rover and the Moon accordingly.

An enclosure for an optoelectronic sensor. The enclosure includes a thermodynamically open first chamber; a thermodynamically closed second chamber; and a rotor extending from the first chamber into the second chamber. The rotor includes a shaft part in the second chamber coaxial to the rotational axis of the rotor. The shaft part mounts an optoelectronic sensor device. The rotor includes a head part in the first chamber coaxial to the rotational axis of the rotor. A heat dissipation fan is fixedly arranged on and surrounds the head part. The head part and the fan are rotatably and thermally coupled to the shaft part to rotate simultaneously with the shaft part. The rotor transfers heat over the shaft part from the second chamber to the head part and the fan dissipates the transferred heat to an environment.

A system is provided for rapidly cooling a pot or boiler. The system includes a cylindrical or semi-cylindrical tube operatively connected to the pot or boiler. The tube also includes a means for attaching a water source or hose. Finally, the tube may also include a series of holes or nozzles for directing a stream or spray of water towards the outer surface of the pot or boiler. The system may be built into the pot or boiler or may be a standalone, removable and adjustable system for use on multiple different pots or boilers.

Systems and methods are described for rapid sterilization of items in a vacuum or sterilization chamber. Embodiments include conductively heated, vacuum-based sterilization approaches that can be applied to devices, such as medical devices, electronic devices, and other suitable devices. For example, an item that has been exposed to excessive contamination is placed inside the sterilization chamber. The chamber can be depressurized to a vacuum level sufficient to gasify liquids inside a solid matrix holding a liquid sterilant, and the item can be conductively heated at least to replace latent heat of vaporization lost during the depressurization. Some embodiments include techniques relating to quality processing, monitoring and feedback control, and/or other functionality.

A heat transfer device includes a storage chamber, a coolant housed within the storage chamber, a cooling chamber, one or more heat transfer components, a fluid passage between the storage chamber and the cooling chamber, and a barrier element. The one or more heat transfer components facilitate heat transfer from a heat source outside of the cooling chamber to the cooling chamber. The barrier element may have (i) a closed configuration, and (ii) an open configuration in which the barrier element is configured to allow the coolant in the storage chamber to flow from the storage chamber into the cooling chamber. The barrier element may reconfigure from the closed configuration to the open configuration in response to a trigger condition, such as the coolant housed within the storage chamber reaching a trigger temperature and/or the initial pressure of the coolant housed within the storage chamber reaching a trigger pressure.

A heat sink includes a bottom plate, a liquid barrier structure and a plurality of heat conducting fins. The liquid barrier structure is located on the periphery of the bottom plate. The heat conducting fins are arranged on the bottom plate. The heat conducting fins are located in the liquid barrier structure.

A semi-passive cooling system for a component exposed to a fluid flow utilizes a hierarchical vasculature and a sacrificial transpirant to cool the component. The component includes a body that defines a transpirant reservoir and the hierarchical vasculature. The transpirant is configured to transition between a solid phase and a vapor phase over an operating temperature range of the component.