VACUUM SCIENCE BLOG

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCSUSA) about 2,200 active satellites orbit our planet and an additional 100 are launched every year. Most of these satellites are used for telecommunication and, with GPS projects like the European GALILEO and the SPACE-X Starlink (which intends to bring internet connection to every spot on earth) on the horizon, their number will continue to grow.

Secondary pumps require a primary pump to initially ‘prime’ them for operation and/or to support their continuous operation. There are several factors which need to be considered for the correct combination or ‘matching’ of primary and secondary pumps to ensure safe and optimized performance.

Writing any text book is an enormous effort and undertaking but one on the subject of Vacuum Science and Technology has unique challenges. These include the enormous breadth of the world of vacuum; its dynamic range and associated principles within this, a continually evolving range of applications and their impact on the requirements for future generations of vacuum equipment and systems.

The Annual Symposium of the American Vacuum Society is the world’s main yearly vacuum conference held in Columbus, Ohio from the 20th to 25th October 2019.

There were 27 parallel sessions in a wide range of topics and over 2500 registrants.

Cryopumps offer several advantages compared to other high-vacuum pumps. For instance, their pumping speed for water vapour is up to 4x higher than any other vacuum pump with the same inlet diameter. Furthermore, unlike gas transfer pumps, i.e. turbomolecular pumps or oil diffusion pumps, cryopumps condense all the gasses within them. The goal of this blog is to explain to you how they operate and where their capabilities are beneficial to the vacuum process. 

According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, at least one-third of food is lost or wasted between harvest and household. In North-America and Europe, this means more than 100 kg of food lost per capita – summing up to 1.3 billion tons annually worldwide! A reduction to this huge mass of food produced in vain would contribute greatly to reducing the greenhouse effect.

The 47th Conference on the Physics and Chemistry of Surfaces and Interfaces (PCSI-47) will be held from January 19-23, 2020 at Millennium Harvest House in Boulder, Colorado, USA. The annual PCSI conference is devoted to achieve a fundamental understanding of the physical, chemical, biological, structural, optical, magnetic and electrical properties of surfaces and interfaces.

Over the years, vacuum pumps have evolved to dry versions (no oil in the swept volume), robust, process specific, low power consumption and reduced footprint. With this shift in the industry, it was great to hear a range of discussions around this during the 10^th Vacuum Symposium UK.

Screw pumps belong to the family of dry compressing gas transfer pumps. (Learn more about the origins of dry pumps here) They are positive-displacement pumps that use two screw shaped intermeshing rotors to move gas along the screw’s axis. They are frequently used in industrial vacuum applications, often in combination with roots blowers and as oil-free roughing pumps in high and ultrahigh vacuum systems.

On 28 August 2019, Vacuum Science World contributor Dr Saim Memon hosted an international, one-day conference on Renewable Energy and Vacuum Insulation for Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (NZEBs) at London South Bank University.