Mild hypothermia is a proven method in emergency medicine. The body temperature is lowered in a controlled manner to between 32 and 34°C to prevent brain damage due to lack of oxygen, especially in resuscitation and stroke patients. Our client, Medical Cooling, has been working on a concept for causing hypothermia through ventilation. This lets the body temperature be lowered to 36°C, which as a first-aid measure, has already been shown to reduce the risk of permanent damage. Medical Cooling asked us to design and build a proof-of-principle system of their concept.
highlights
• system analyses and LEM modelling
• heat exchanger design and implementation
• proof-of-principle setup
cooling using cryogens.
Demcon kryoz created a design for a proof-of-principle setup. Our extensive knowledge of cryogenics meant we were able to analyze and model the cooling cycle in great detail. The cycle uses liquid nitrogen (or oxygen) as a cooling source to cool the respiratory flow down to -50°C. This design was realized and tested in our lab, which validated the models and yielded significant insight into the system’s behavior and the challenges for the next development phase.
close collaboration.
Alongside the cryocooling part, the heart of the system comprises a respiratory module provided by Demcon Macawi. Combining our expertise on cryogenics and Demcon Macawi’s know-how on respiratory systems meant we could realize a well- defined proof-of-principle system able to serve as a development platform for further industrialization.
Our client, Medical Cooling, validated the method of cold ventilation. This innovation will be brought to the patient by the non-profit NGO Ethical Saving gUG, which promotes savings through improved medical treatments.
"cool to save lives."
It’s always nice to see that our know-how and experience in thermal systems is used to realize systems that can have a high, positive impact on human lives. This project is a perfect example of Demcon’s slogan: “imagine tomorrow. challenge today.”
