Cryo-Fluid Capacitor (CFC) for Solid-State Storage and Supply-on-Demand of Cryogenic Fluids

Storage and transfer of fluid commodities such as oxygen, hydrogen, natural gas, nitrogen, argon, etc. are absolute necessities in virtually every industry. These fluids are typically contained in one of two ways: as low-pressure cryogenic liquids, or as high-pressure compressed gases. Cryogenic liquids afford high energy and volume densities, but require complex storage systems to limit boil-off, need constant settling in zero-gravity environments, and are not well suited for overly dynamic situations where the tank orientation can change suddenly (in an airplane or car, for example). Conversely, high-pressure gas storage bottles are not affected by tank orientation, do not require settling, and can be kept at room temperature; they are considerably less complicated pieces of equipment. These vessels, however, are heavy due to the thick walls required to contain the high pressures, and storage densities — even at extreme pressures such as 10,000 psi — are dramatically lower.