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An Intriguing, if Somewhat Mysterious, Self-Chilling Can

By Rain Noe - November 29, 2012

in Object Culture | Bags

The Chill Can is a package design with a twist: If the name didn't tip you off, the thing chills itself. Using a "Micro Cooling" technology which has reportedly been in the works for nearly two decades, the can uses onboard CO2 to somehow drop the contents by 30 degrees when the user hits the button. (The curious among you can attempt to decipher the scientific explanation here.)

So how does this impact the environment? I suppose if it were absolutely widespread enough to make a dent in the production of styrofoam coolers, that'd be one thing. But the terse description on the Chill Can website under "Environment" is decidedly not reassuring: "It has been tried, tested, and found to be environmentally safe." Ah, we see! Awesome!

The Chill Can recently won the Editor's Choice Award for Packaging Design at Supply Side West, an industry tradeshow. To that accolade, however, I must confer my own award of Worst Promotional Videos Ever:

Want a better look at that button? Here you go:

I don't doubt that this thing has some kind of potential, but I'd like to hear more about what it does to the environment, if it's recyclable, and if there's any potential in, say, the medical field in developing nations, for instance.

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James Patrick

12 years ago

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It just uses the same CO2 that they put in carbonated drinks. They get it as a byproduct of other manufacturing processes where it would otherwise be immediately released into the atmosphere. So besides the power used to pressurize the gas, the feature is carbon-neutral.
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Fred Schechter

12 years ago

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Filed in 2001
http://www.google.com/patents?id=Sh0NAAAAEBAJ&printsec=abstract&zoom=4#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Mike

12 years ago

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Nick, that's exactly what they're doing. When you release pressurized gas, the temperature drops. There was a version of this can made a few years ago as a concept that released a massive amount of CFCs when it was used, but it brought the can from room temperature to near freezing almost instantly.
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Nick

12 years ago

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Sounds to me like they're just releasing pressurized CO2 into the atmosphere.
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jocafa

12 years ago

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"The curious among you can attempt to decipher the scientific explanation here."

Magic. Got it!
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