JEOL Introduces New Environmental Control System for Scientific Instrument Labs

Scientific instrumentation is typically housed in an enclosed room, with just enough access for operation or service. The heat generated from equipment, personnel entering and exiting the room, and the enclosed facility itself can all affect the performance of sensitive instrumentation.

To help ensure optimum instrument performance and maintain a consistently cool environment without adding air turbulence, JEOL, a global supplier of ultrahigh resolution electron microscopes, has developed a unique radiant cooling system for the instrument laboratory.

The JEOL Hydro Radiant Panel system is custom-designed and fitted to each room, with consideration for heat load, local weather, facilities, and instrument requirements. It consists of wall-mounted water circulating panels, acoustic absorbing materials, a water chiller, plumbing, an optional air exchange system, and a wall-mounted remote controller.

The complete system insulates the instrument lab from temperature fluctuations. Average temperature in the lab is maintained within 0.2oC (0.36oF) per hour when optimized. This hydro cooling system controls room temperature without air turbulence, noise, or vibration.

To date, JEOL has installed more than 30 systems worldwide, most recently at the University of Texas in Dallas, where the JEM-ARM200F atomic resolution Transmission Electron Microscope has been installed in the lab of Dr. Moon Kim, director of the Nano and Beyond Microscopy Lab, and at Arizona State University in the Southwest Center for Aberration Corrected Electron Microscopy, home of Dr. Ray W. Carpenter. In addition to microscopy labs, the Radiant Panel System is suitable for any instrumentation where optimal performance would be affected by temperature fluctuations in the room.