• Question: dry ice and liquid nitrogen - what are the dangers and outcomes of it going wrong

    Asked by anon-224965 to Simon on 14 Nov 2019.
    • Photo: Simon Brown

      Simon Brown answered on 14 Nov 2019:

      At -78C, dry ice or frozen Carbon Dioxide is cold. It can give you a nasty frostbite so you need to be careful.
      But liquid nitrogen at -196C will not just give frostbite, it can destroy skin cells and cause some very nasty cold burns very quickly.
      PPE (personal protective equipment) is essential so no bare skin, thick thermal gloves (with elastic cuffs), safety glasses and a lab coat.
      It is amazing stuff but you must respect it.

Comments