Sprayable Cooling Composition Phase Transition

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional cold sprays provide brief and sometimes strong cooling effects, lacking the ability for gentle and long-lasting cooling, which is essential for medical treatments, sports injuries, and performance enhancement, as they often cause tissue damage due to rapid cooling and lack of targeted dosing.

Innovation Solution

A sprayable cooling composition comprising a dispersion of a liquid propellant and a refrigerant with a boiling point between -20°C and +37°C, and a cold transfer material with a melting point between -10°C and +30°C, where the refrigerant changes state to solid during application, allowing for controlled heat removal, and a binder for precise application and prolonged cooling.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If liquid gases are used in aerosol cans for cold spray, then flexible direct application is achieved, but the cooling effect is brief and sometimes undesirably strong

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveflexible direct applicationVSAvoidduration of cooling effect
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDuration of action of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The invention utilizes phase transitions of the refrigerant (from liquid to solid) to achieve prolonged cooling effects. The refrigerant is designed to freeze on the tissue surface, forming an ice layer that maintains cooling for extended periods, directly addressing the brief duration problem of conventional aerosol cold sprays.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the physical parameters of the cooling composition by using a dispersion of refrigerant in propellant where the refrigerant has a melting point between -10°C and +30°C. This parameter change allows the refrigerant to transition to solid state during application, fundamentally altering the duration and intensity profile of the cooling effect compared to conventional liquid gas aerosols.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Productivity

If conventional cold sprays are used, then quick application is achieved, but tissue damage may occur due to rapid cooling

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvespeed of applicationVSAvoidtissue damage from rapid cooling
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The controlled phase transition of refrigerant from liquid to solid provides a gradual cooling effect rather than rapid freezing. The ice layer formation process naturally regulates the cooling rate, preventing tissue damage while maintaining application speed, as the phase change occurs progressively on the tissue surface.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

Solution Approach 2:

The propellant acts as an intermediary medium that controls the delivery and evaporation rate of the refrigerant. By adjusting propellant properties and composition, the release of refrigerant is moderated, preventing sudden intense cold that could damage tissue while maintaining quick application capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Duration of action of moving object

If a two-stage process is used to freeze water into ice layer, then longer cooling effect is achieved, but the process becomes complicated and targeted dosing is not possible

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveduration of cooling effectVSAvoidcomplexity of application process
Core Design Contradiction:
Duration of action of moving objectVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention merges the refrigerant delivery and ice layer formation into a single integrated spray application. The refrigerant-dispersion aerosol combines the propellant and refrigerant in a stable dispersion that, upon application, automatically forms an ice layer without requiring separate steps, thus achieving prolonged cooling through simple single-stage application.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The refrigerant is pre-dispersed in the propellant in a stable emulsion or suspension form before application. This preliminary preparation ensures that upon spraying, the refrigerant is already positioned to freeze and form an ice layer immediately on the tissue surface, eliminating the need for separate water application and freezing steps.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

4Stability of the object's composition

If the refrigerant is dispersed in propellant as an emulsion, then homogeneous spray application is achieved, but the refrigerant particles must be small enough to atomize properly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehomogeneity of sprayVSAvoidparticle size control
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The refrigerant is maintained in liquid or fine particulate form within the propellant dispersion during storage, ensuring homogeneous mixing and proper atomization. The phase transition to solid occurs only after application on the tissue surface, allowing the refrigerant to be dispersed at a molecular or fine particulate level for homogeneous spraying while still achieving solid-state cooling effect.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The composition achieves a gentle and long-lasting cooling effect, preventing tissue damage and allowing for adjustable cooling intensity and duration, maintaining a temperature difference for at least 20-30 minutes, thus enhancing medical treatments and athletic performance.

Implementation Method 1

the evaporation cold generated by the evaporating propellant is not used directly to cool the tissue, but is first transferred to a cold carrier

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectEvaporation: Evaporation

Implementation Method 2

the change in the physical state of the cold transfer material from liquid to solid can then be used in an advantageous manner

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectPhase change: Phase Change

Implementation Method 3

which is then frozen into a layer of ice using a cold spray

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectFreezing: Freezing

Implementation Method 4

heat can subsequently be removed from the tissue in order to reverse this state again

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectHeat transfer: Conduction (thermal)

Data Source

PatentEP3402448B1Sprayable cooling composition and apparatus for its' application
Publication Date: 2020.12.02 FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV
  • EP3402448B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3402448B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3402448B1 patent drawingFigure 3A~3D

AI summary

The invention relates to a sprayable composition for cooling human tissue. The composition comprises a dispersion of a liquid propellant having a boiling point in the range of -45 °C to +37 °C and a coolant material dispersed in the propellant having a melting point in the range of -10 °C to +30 °C. The cooling effect is also based on the fact that the refrigerant material begins to melt after application to the tissue.