The Hindu : Cryogrinding of plastic to cut pollution level

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 22, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi

Cryogrinding of plastic to cut pollution level

By Our Staff Reporter

TIRUCHI, FEB. 21 . Environmental pollution caused by plastic can be brought down through the `cryogrinding' technology, developed at the Centre for Cryogenic Technology, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

S. Kasthurirengan, an Associate Professor at the Centre, said this technology had been tested successfully at pilot plants for grinding plastic substances, without causing chemical degradation. He was delivering the fourth `Bharat Ratna' Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Endowment Lecture, organised by the Physics Department of the St. Joseph's College.

Talking on `Cryogenics — technology and applications', Dr. Kasthurirengan said the cryogrinding technology was also applicable to powdering spices. The value addition was by retention of oil content in the powdered spices, which led to evaporation of oil in the normal process of grinding. Cryogenics was being applied in a wide gamut of activities, including space research, biology, electronics and power generation. Storage and handling of cryogenic fuel comprising liquefied forms of gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and helium, was easier, he said.

By `cryofreezing', the biological clock could be stopped and started at will, and `cryosurgery' could be used for treating warts, piles, skin diseases, brain surgery and Parkinson's disease. Likewise, `cryocooling' was used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetoencephalography (diagnosis of brain). In the field of electronics, the technology enhanced superconductivity and facilitated highly sensitive magnetic field research.

He also explained the application of cryogenics for increasing the lifespan of cutting tools 400 times. Through cold stretching, the tensil strength could be increased. The technology could be used for preserving food through the `freeze drying' method using liquid nitrogen. The inert fluid was used for packaging too. Superconductivity generation was an important futuristic application of cryogenics, he said.

Students should play a vital role to make the President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam's dream of making the country a superpower by 2020 come true. They should acquire knowledge in many areas of science and technology, he said.

Later, Dr. Kasthurirengan presented visual snippets of successful experiments conducted at the Indian Institute of Science.

Presiding, the Principal, A.G. Leonard, urged the students to spend a lot of time in the laboratories. The Physics Association president, M. Kalidoss, and the Head of the Physics Department, A. Selvaraj, spoke.

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