| What is Dry Ice?
Dry Ice is frozen carbon dioxide, a normal part of our earth's atmosphere. It is the gas that we exhale during breathing and the gas that plants use in photosynthesis. It is also the same gas commonly added to water to make soda water. Dry Ice is particularly useful for freezing, and keeping things frozen because of its very cold temperature: -109.3°F or -78.5°C. Dry Ice is widely used because it is simple to freeze and easy to handle using insulated gloves. Dry Ice changes directly from a solid to a gas -sublimation- in normal atmospheric conditions without going through a wet liquid stage. Therefore it gets the name "dry ice."
As a general rule, Dry Ice will sublimate at a rate of five to ten pounds every 24 hours in a typical ice chest. This sublimation continues from the time of purchase, therefore, pick up Dry Ice as close to the time needed as possible. Bring an ice chest or some other insulated container to hold the Dry Ice and slow the sublimation rate. Dry Ice sublimates faster than regular ice melts but will extend the life of regular ice.
It is best not to store Dry Ice in your freezer because your freezer's thermostat will shut off the freezer due to the extreme cold of the Dry Ice! Of course if the freezer is broken, Dry Ice will save all your frozen goods.
Commercial shippers of perishables often use dry ice even for non frozen goods. Dry ice gives more than twice the cooling energy per pound of weight and three times the cooling energy per volume than regular water ice (H2O). It is often mixed with regular ice to save shipping weight and extend the cooling energy of water ice. Sometimes dry ice is made on the spot from liquid CO2. The resulting dry ice snow is packed in the top of a shipping container offering extended cooling without electrical refrigeration equipment and connections.
Safety Tips and Party Hints
It's fun to have a mysterious fog floating around a Halloween party to set the eerie mood or to give the look of a witch's cauldron simmering it's poisonous brew. Hollywood uses dry ice for a lot of its fog and steam.
Dry Ice Storage, Handling and Safety tips
- You need to order it in advance for a party. Most places do not keep it in stock. Dry ice can be ordered from your local grocery store's seafood section. Some liquor stores can get dry ice. Or you might call an ice distributor if your area has one.
- Once your dry ice has arrived, plan on picking it up as close to the time of your party as possible.
- Wear gloves!!! DO NOT TOUCH DRY ICE WITH YOUR HANDS! You can get a severe burn, frostbite or tissue damage to your skin. If you don't have thick gloves, use tongs to lift it.
- When going to pick it up, bring along an insulated container like an ice chest or Styrofoam cooler. Once you get it home, don't go moving it around before you need it. This will increase sublimation, changing it from a solid to a gas.
- Once you have your dry ice, do your best not to open and close the container too much. And, never store dry ice in an air-tight container. I could explode!!!
Dry Ice Fog Effect Tips
- To create fog, put chunks of dry ice in a water-tight container.
- Cover this with water.
- Warm water creates more fog, but the ice will disappear faster.
- Cooler water will give less fog, but will last longer.
- To keep the fog flowing for your party, just keep adding dry ice and water to he pot!
- If you're going to put your dry ice in a punch bowl, make sure to tell your guests to be careful not to touch it with their bare hands.
- Also make sure you tell your guest to not get any dry ice in their drinks so that their lips could touch it. Or, that they don't digest it and cause internal injuries.
|
