# Is there a technology that performs the reverse of a microwave oven? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 25, 2007, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538 "2007-04-25T00:36:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Crescend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Crescend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crescend)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/21 "2007-04-25T14:55:18Z")
[QUOTE=Mike Fun] I’m no chemist, but I homebrew and keg my own beer. The method for force-carbonating a keg is to chill it and then shake the crap out of it under pressure from a co2 tank. This forces the co2 into suspension. It works better with a cold keg than a warm one. [/QUOTE] Is this because of the chilling, or the shaking? ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/22 "2007-04-25T15:06:18Z")
[QUOTE=Mike Fun] “I’m inclined to think that as you cool the beer, the solubility constant of the CO2 dissolved in it would go down. So as you cool it, the CO2 will come out of solution, and go off into the air. Congratulations - you now have a perfectly chilled and utterly flat beer.” That doesn’t seem to make sense. I’m no chemist, but I homebrew and keg my own beer. The method for force-carbonating a keg is to chill it and then shake the crap out of it under pressure from a co2 tank. This forces the co2 into suspension. It works better with a cold keg than a warm one. [/QUOTE] Yeah – whenever I have a cold carbonated drink, it always holds its carbonation in solution better when cold than when warm. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/23 "2007-04-25T15:19:08Z")
This may not always hold true, but generally, solubility of solids in liquids is proportional to temperature, and solubility of gases in liquids is inversely proportional. CO[sub]2[/sub] will dissolve better in cold liquids. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/24 "2007-04-25T15:46:53Z")
It’s not really the opposite of a microwave, but there ARE solid-state devices that make things cooler. Look up the _Peltier Effect_ and \*Pelitier coolers \*. You can cascade them and get very low temperatures. They’re used in the photodetection business all the time. And no moving parts! What makes this particularly interesting is that there was an attempt to use this effect or something similar to build a practical refrigerator. Back in the pre-Freon days, they used ammonia as a refrigerant, and a lot of people got sick or died when their coolant loop in their home refrigerator got punctured. This jhappened in Germany a lot, for some reason. In one of the littlew-known events in his life, Albert Einstein and some other famous German physicist (Heisenberg?) got together to try to come up with a sage alternative to the ammonia-based refrigerator. It never caught on, though. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/25 "2007-04-25T16:03:27Z")
[QUOTE=Olive, The Other Reindeer] Whatever happened to the old “spray your can of beer from the CO2 fire extinguiser for 30 seconds or until the beer is cold” trick? [/QUOTE] Mythbusters did this one. Works like a charm, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/26 "2007-04-25T16:16:31Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] Look up the _Peltier Effect_ and \*Pelitier coolers \*.. … What makes this particularly interesting is that there was an attempt to use this effect or something similar to build a practical refrigerator. … It never caught on, though. [/QUOTE] It did catch on for special applications, like portable coolers ([example](http://www.dometic.com/templates/Product,1439,1198.aspx)). ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/27 "2007-04-25T16:42:34Z")
[QUOTE=Mike Fun] “I’m inclined to think that as you cool the beer, the solubility constant of the CO2 dissolved in it would go down. So as you cool it, the CO2 will come out of solution, and go off into the air. Congratulations - you now have a perfectly chilled and utterly flat beer.” That doesn’t seem to make sense. I’m no chemist, but I homebrew and keg my own beer. The method for force-carbonating a keg is to chill it and then shake the crap out of it under pressure from a co2 tank. This forces the co2 into suspension. It works better with a cold keg than a warm one. [/QUOTE] yup, we visited a Pepsi bottling facility when I was in grade school. The only thing I remember is that when they gave us those bottles from the line, they were REALLY cold. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Dave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/46a35a/32.png) [@Great\_Dave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Dave)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/28 "2007-04-25T16:55:36Z")
[QUOTE=Crescend] > [@](#): > > Originally Posted by **Mike Fun** > I’m no chemist, but I homebrew and keg my own beer. The method for force-carbonating a keg is to chill it and then shake the crap out of it under pressure from a co2 tank. This forces the co2 into suspension. It works better with a cold keg than a warm one. Is this because of the chilling, or the shaking? [/QUOTE] Chilling increases the solubility of CO2 into the beer, and the shaking increases the surface area between the (uncarbonated) beer and the CO2. The alternative is to let it sit under pressure for longer. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/29 "2007-04-25T17:01:16Z")
I give you the [jet-powered beer cooler](http://www.asciimation.co.nz/beer/). ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/30 "2007-04-25T17:41:42Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] In one of the littlew-known events in his life, Albert Einstein and some other famous German physicist (Heisenberg?) got together to try to come up with a sage alternative to the ammonia-based refrigerator. It never caught on, though. [/QUOTE] The [Einstein-Szilard refrigerator patent](http://www.fourmilab.ch/etexts/einstein/uspat1781541/www/) - see also [this page](http://www.dannen.com/budatalk.html) based on its author’s good 1997 _Scientific American_ article on the subject. The same rough idea was later used in the cooling systems of some nuclear reactors, but after their patent had lapsed. ---
**Author:** ![Crescend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Crescend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crescend)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/31 "2007-04-25T18:07:15Z")
I stand corrected. I was assuming that the solubility of gases in liquid was similar to the solubility of solids in liquid, i.e. directly proportional to temperature. Ignorance fought! ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/32 "2007-04-25T18:25:07Z")
The trouble with the fire extinguisher is that it’s too expensive. The cheap fast way to cool down beer is with ice and rock salt. Same as old-timey ice cream makers. ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/33 "2007-04-25T18:39:05Z")
Doesn’t a microwave work because the frequency of the waves is about right to excite water molecules? Now, if there was a frequency that could _slow_ water molecules… Say water vibrates at _x_ gigahertz (or whatever unit that’s measured) at 32 degrees F, would exposing water to a sympathetic wavelength slow vibration … Hey! Squirrel Boy is on. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/34 "2007-04-25T19:28:24Z")
Of course, while the solubility of CO[sub]2[/sub] increases as the temperature decreases, all bets are off when the beer freezes. ---
**Author:** ![teemingONE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b4bc9f/32.png) [@teemingONE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teemingONE)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/35 "2007-04-26T04:16:58Z")
I think all you need to do is reverse the polarity of the microwave. ---
**Author:** ![bbs2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e495f1/32.png) [@bbs2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bbs2k)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/36 "2007-04-26T04:33:01Z")
[QUOTE=teemingONE] I think all you need to do is reverse the polarity of the microwave. [/QUOTE] Are you trying to kill us all?!?!?!? ---
**Author:** ![stanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@stanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stanger)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/37 "2007-04-26T04:40:50Z")
Seems to me that I heard many years ago that someone had or was going to market a milkshake that you put in a microwave oven, but it came out cold. Was this true? How did it work? ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/38 "2007-04-26T04:48:24Z")
Maybe it worked because it went into the microwave colder. Otherwise, it makes no sense. ---
**Author:** ![rock\_party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@rock\_party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rock_party)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/39 "2007-04-26T05:23:15Z")
To cool you have to remove heat. On cold mornings I can turn on the blowdryer in my small bathroom for 5 min and warm it up. It would be so nice to have a similar device in summer to cool the bathroom down, but alas no such luck. Short of a exterior vented window unit to expel the heat there is no such electronic device that will do the trick. If there was we could eliminate global warming. ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538/40 "2007-04-26T05:30:12Z")
[QUOTE=stanger] Seems to me that I heard many years ago that someone had or was going to market a milkshake that you put in a microwave oven, but it came out cold. Was this true? How did it work? [/QUOTE] I remember this. I may have even tried one. The shake started out frozen rock hard and you heated it up until it achieved milk-shake consistency. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-technology-that-performs-the-reverse-of-a-microwave-oven/401538.md?page=3)