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High Performance Vacuum Insulation

Empirical thermal analyses detail advanced vacuum insulation performance in cryogenic and high-temperature environments. If you have questions about thermal insulation performance in your specific application, please contact us.

Looking for the best thermal insulation?

You’re in the right place. For complex, demanding, and critical applications, the best insulation is one that has been engineered specifically for your system.

We design Insulon® advanced vacuum insulation for a variety of applications across industries. Operating temperatures range from -270°C to 1000°C (-454°F to 1832°F).

Ultra thin vacuum insulation component displayed with cross section view. Walls as thin as 0.25mm.
We engineer Insulon® into cans, tubes, flexible hoses, and custom designs.

Engineered for your unique application.

We design Insulon® components according to your component-level and system-level parameters. Our most popular form factors include vacuum jacketed transfer hoses, pipes, tubes, containers, and custom geometries.

Thermal Protection

Extreme temperatures pose risks to personnel and equipment. Protective insulation can reduce dangerous surface temperatures.

Thermal Efficiency

Energy efficiency is more important than ever. For heat-based systems, thermal efficiency is a crucial performance metric.

Thermal Stability

Manufacturing and other processes often require precise temperature control. Insulation conserves energy and minimizes heat loss.

Which vacuum insulated tube will have better insulation performance?

What is the R-value for vacuum insulation?

Vacuum insulation is different from traditional insulation materials. With traditional materials, constant R-values are readily available and uniform across applications. With vacuum insulation, performance varies according to the geometry of each part and the temperature in which it operates. This variability means that there is not a “one-size-fits-all” R-value for vacuum insulation. We customize thermal performance according to your application’s unique needs.

The best insulation needs more than just thermal performance.

Structural Requirements

Do you need insulation that resists compression or offers structural support? Insulon is built from sturdy metals including stainless steel, Inconel, and other alloys. We engineer Insulon to withstand load, pressure, and more.

Material Requirements

Material selection is extremely important, especially for industries that operate in cleanroom environments. Advanced vacuum insulation materials are selected according to the individual application, and can fulfill food-grade and medical-grade requirements..

Spatial Requirements

With an overall wall thickness as low as 0.25mm, Insulon delivers high-performance in an ultra-low footprint. We specialize in small-diameter vacuum insulation design — we even manufacture vacuum insulation for needles.

Minimize cryogenic boil-off and reduce material costs

Vacuum insulated container liquid nitrogen boil off analysis compared to air-insulated container
Insulon vacuum insulation minimizes boil-off material losses

Cryogenic fluids are valuable, which makes boil-off an expensive problem. Evaporative boil-off can lead to significant material losses.

Advanced vacuum insulation can help minimize boil-off for a more efficient system. We engineer Insulon for cryogenic fluids including liquid nitrogen, hydrogen, argon, and even helium. All components undergo helium testing to ensure gas impermeability.

In this video (starting at 1:03), liquid nitrogen (-196°C) evaporates from an Insulon canister and a single-walled, non-insulated canister. Boil-off rates were recorded for 3 minutes. Ambient temperature was 23°C.

Cryogenic insulation performance analyses

Thermal cycling resistance for reliable insulation performance

Thermal cycling analysis of an Insulon vacuum insulated part
For this test, one heat cycle was defined as a 3-minute ramp up during which the component reaches steady-state, followed by a 2-minute cool-down period. Ambient temperature was 23°C.

Traditional types of vacuum insulation can suffer significant degradations in performance when exposed to high temperatures — particularly if the exposure happens repeatedly.

Insulon is an advanced form of vacuum insulation that has been engineered to withstand thermal cycling as well as thermal shock, even at elevated temperatures.

We use accelerated life-cycle testers to measure thermal cycling resistance. Consistent performance demonstrates the long-term integrity of the vacuum space.

This analysis illustrate’s the ability of an Insulon component to withstand over 20,000 cycles at 450°C, without any measurable drop in insulation performance.

High-temperature insulation performance analyses

With MLI for the ultimate vacuum insulation performance

For applications that require our peak performance, we install multi-layer insulation (MLI) inside the vacuum annulus.

How does MLI reduce radiation heat transfer?

All vacuum insulated components drastically reduce convective and conductive heat transfer. For peak performance, reducing radiation heat transfer is key.

We engineered our own proprietary multi-layer insulation for use across Insulon’s entire operating temperature range, from -270°C to 1000°C.

Our high-density MLI packs up to 18 layers per inch, for ultra-high thermal performance. Insulon components are well-known for being ultra-thin; we increase the width of the vacuum space to accommodate the appropriate number of layers.

Installed directly inside the vacuum annulus, MLI increases the thermal performance of Insulon components while maintaining our low-maintenance packages.