| Stephan Claparede and Cristina Ávalos Navarro at Kern Frio investigate new technologies of thermal insulation, and their applications in the capillary distribution of temperaturecritical pharmaceutical products
The distribution of pharmaceutical products at a guaranteed controlled temperature has always been a big challenge. The introduction of vacuum panels, with insulating features up to seven times higher than the best currently used insulating materials offer a definitive solution to the distribution of pharmaceutical products at controlled temperature. This could result in an unprecedented revolution in the area of insulated conditioning.
VACUUM INSULATION
Vacuum insulation is a thermal insulation technology that significantly overcomes the conventionally used insulating materials (such as polystyrene or polyurethane foams), by reducing the heat conductivity resulting from the vacuuming process. By using vacuum panel technology, the thickness of the thermal insulating material can be significantly reduced, thus optimising the internal volume of a container, respecting the requirements of the product.
A VIP’s lifespan is more than 15 years. Today, new materials and processes have reduced costs and production time, establishing the VIP as one of the most used thermal insulating solutions on future markets.
VIPs are being used in a wide range of multiple applications, including: containers for safe distribution of organs, vaccines, laboratory samples and other temperaturecritical pharmaceutical products, as well as for thermal insulation of cooled and refrigerated trucks. The exceptional low heat conductivity of VIPs revolutionises the features and characteristics offered by cold chain logistics for the shipment of final products. The use of VIPs allows for up to five times longer delivery time and a reduction or total elimination of alternative additional cooling elements (such as dry ice or cold packs). |
