Specimen freezing rate regulator device

Abstract

A system and method for concurrently and uniformly removing thermal energy from a specimen sample. A thermal insulating device is provided comprising an insulating material, the device having a plurality of chambers for receiving specimen samples, the device further includes a thermal ballast whereby the rate of thermal energy removal is controlled and influenced by the thermal ballast.

1 . A specimen freezing rate regulator device, comprising:
 an enclosure comprising an insulating material, the enclosure having an opening;   a specimen chamber disposed within the enclosure, the specimen chamber being in contact with the insulating material of the enclosure; and   a cover removably coupled to the opening of the enclosure, the cover being in contact with the insulating material of the enclosure, wherein a specimen sample is placed within the specimen chamber and in contact with the insulating material of the enclosure such that a temperature of the insulating material is transferred to the specimen sample at a desired rate.   
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the specimen chamber comprises a plurality of specimen containment chambers. 
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a thermal ballast thermally coupled to the specimen chamber. 
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a thermoconductive material interposedly positioned between the specimen chamber and at least one of the enclosure and the cover, wherein the thermoconductive material is in contact with the insulating material of the enclosure. 
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 3 , further comprising a thermoconductive material interposedly positioned between the specimen chamber and at least one of the enclosure, the cover, and the thermal ballast. 
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein the thermal ballast comprises at least one of a metal, a metal alloy, a ceramic material, a sealed liquid container, a plastic material, a glass material, a cast material, a synthetic material, a silicone material, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         7 . The device of  claim 4 , wherein the thermoconductive material is selected from the group consisting of a metal, a metal alloy, a ceramic material, a plastic material, a plastic compound, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         8 . A method for manufacturing a device for concurrently and uniformly removing thermal energy from a specimen sample, the method comprising:
 providing a thermally insulated device having a specimen chamber into which the specimen sample is loaded;   disposing the specimen chamber into an insulation base, the insulation base comprising an insulating material;   providing a cover for the insulation base, the cover being removably couple to the insulation base and forming a thermal seal between the specimen chamber and the cover.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising providing a thermal ballast in contact with at least one of the insulation base, the specimen chamber, the specimen sample, and the cover. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the specimen chamber comprises a plurality of specimen containment chambers for receiving a plurality of specimen samples. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the insulating material is selected from a group consisting of a uniform density cross-linked closed-cell polyethylene foam rubber material, a uniform density polystyrene foam material, a closed-cell polyurethane foam material, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         12 . A method for concurrently and uniformly removing thermal energy from a specimen sample, the method comprising:
 placing the specimen sample in a sample container;   embedding the sample container in a thermal insulating device comprising an insulating material; and   placing the thermal insulating device into a lower temperature environment, wherein the thermal insulating device comprises an insulation base for receiving the sample container.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the thermal insulating device further comprises a cylindrical insulation base having a plurality of sample container chambers arranged in a radially equidistant orientation with respect to a central axis of the cylindrical insulation base, the thermal insulating device further having an insulating cover coupled to the cylindrical insulation base, a seal being formed between the cover and the cylindrical insulation base. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the plurality of sample container chambers are symmetrically oriented about the central axis of the cylindrical insulation base. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the insulating material is a solid insulating foam. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the insulating material comprises a synthetic material. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising a ballast chamber centrally and coaxially disposed within the plurality of specimen sample containment chambers, the ballast chamber containing a removable thermal ballast. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein an exterior of the device comprises a second insulating material to reduce heat transfer to and from the operator during physical contact. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the thermal insulating device further comprises a thermally conductive material. 
     
     
         20 . A method of  claim 12  wherein the sample container comprises a removable rack having a plurality of holes.