I was very very interested about this as it was different than any other cooling methods though a little bit similar to "Vapor Phase" but anyways it seemed interesting to so i thought why not share what i have learnt about it so far. it is definitely not the most efficient method, but yeah you have to agree, this is unique.

: basic introduction :
Air, water, compressors , dry ice and liquid nitrogen.

This is some well-known conceptions in cooling for processors today.
Todays processors are getting faster and thus producing more heat
and requires better cooling.

In this article/guide I will try to show some pictures and text that will describe
how to use dry ice or as the right name is CO 2.

I will point out that neither I will not take any responsibility
for any injuries that can occur to persons/hardware.
At -70 degrees Celsius the ice transforms to gas when it melts. As we all
know carbon dioxide is not healthy in vast amounts, so when you use this
method to cool down GPU/CPU make sure that ventilation is sufficent at all times.

The main purpose of this article is to give you overclockers out there some clue how to use dry ice, and what is called to be "extreme cooling" . In this category I will name a few: dry ice, cascade and liquid nitrogen. Using dry ice or as I call it DICE ( Dry Ice) requries some finess and timing.

What you will need first is a receptacle which is to be placed on the CPU/GPU. Preferable in copper because it conducts heat/cold quite good. I will not make any claims for measurements on the receptacle, but what you will be using is the bottom of the container. On that you hardsolder a copper-pipe in sufficent dimensons/length. It should have similar design as a waterblock , aka " fins" which gives broader contactarea which in turn gives better cooling.
Next step is giving right liquid because it will transfer cooling better than pouring DICE directly into the pipe.

At -78 degrees water is out of the question, the same goes for acetone and glycol. I have experience of two liquids, those can be easily purchased at closest gasstation. T-Red or Red ethanol freezes around -85c , the same goes for T-Blue. These shall be concentrated, otherwise they are useless.
Next are T -99.5 which is 99.5 ethanol. I have personally verified these temperatures directly at the manufacturer, sure it can be some minor differences but the temperatures should be correct. The first time I used T-Red which gave good temperatures but not as good as I thought. The reason could be the 5 % water in the T-Red which is reducing the performance, but probably they all are the same. In this particular test I used T- 99.5 which in use will need good ventilation.

If the receptacle has the dimension of 2 " or 50 mm you count 2 " of liquid in the pipe, it is a bit hard to know exactly but count 5-8 cm from the bottom to the edge of the liquid. These numbers are not stated and will need testing.
It will need some feelings when using dry ice, too much liquid leads to less cooling and the same goes for dry ice. Then the cold has nowhere to go, it shall all be measured so it will be a perfect combination of liquid and dry ice.

CPU-Container







GFX-Container





Where do i buy dry ice ?

I do know that AGA in Sweden sells dry ice in " pellets" and in pulleys. The best are pellets because we want a big contact-area. Pulleys are ok but requires crossing.

So what is the price ?

I can not know what your receptacles/containers will cost to produce. If you are skilled then perhaps you will make them yourself and saving some cash. The dry ice here in Sweden is in my opinion cheap in comparison price/performance. I will point out that different stores have different prices so watch out. I personally puchasing no less than 10 kgs of dry ice pellets that is packed in a big box that contains 5kgs of pellets. An aprox price here in Sweden are 400 Sek inc VAT for 10kgs.


Performance/Temperature then ?

Because I doesn`t have any external thermometer I was forced to use the BIOS instead. After a while the temperature begins to decrease at the same time I pour down the DI pellets. I archived -35c and that is quite good, but I must point out that the BIOS figures is not to trust. With a compressor I archived -19c so the difference is quite big. The biggest advantage except from the extreme cooling dry ice gives is that it resist the heat from GPU/CPU.
I would say that Dry Ice cooling is way ahead of the compressor cooling in terms of overclocking/benchmarking. I lost just 1c in 32 secs of benching, a compressor looses 5 times of that. This could be the thing that gives you the edge in terms of benching/overclocking.

But what then ? I can`t run Dry Ice 24/7 ??

No that`s right, how would it look with a big truck standing outside your flat constantly ? In that the compressor/air/water cooling wins a big victory. Nah I see Dry Ice as a fun and different way of cooling and cost a fraction of a compressor. And is better for short times of benchmarking/overclocking. The advantage of a compressor is that you will have constant cooling power 24/7.

Consumption ?

Well it all depends, but we are not talking about a mere 10 mins and it is all over. At this try I had 10kgs of Dry Ice and a bottle of T-99.5 and I finished off 6-7kgs in aprox 7 hours of benchmarking and in effective benching ca 4-5 hours. So 10 kgs is enough for a weekend of benchmarking. The thing about Dry Ice is that it vapours by fuming. You will need to use it instantly because the volume is constantly decreasing. If it is cold it will last longer.

Condensation/Isolation

Hehe do I really need to say anything ? :-) If you are going to isolate do it properly. It is probably a no-ending job. I have only isolated the graphics-cards receptacle because of the frost wich in turn can drop onto the motherboard and then.... well do I really need to say ?? I used a black garbagebag, cut out holes for the AGP-slot and the CPU socket. It can " sputter " a bit if you pour too much of Dry Ice, so begin with little and increase slowly. After finished benching/overclocking turn it all off and dismantle the receptacles and canistors from the GPU/CPU, ( be careful because the CPU has a nasty habit of sitting too thight with the receptacle). Loosen all cables etc.... in with the stuff into the OVEN and turn it to 50c and wait ca 1-2hours to avoid any short circuiting.

Ex....of how u can do it







Final Words

Well what shall I say ? I´ve tried aircooling, watercooling and TEC/peltier. But Dry Ice is something extra because it requires something extra from you when using it and of-course it is very good cooling-method. It also gives the user a clue how to use the most xtreme ways of cooling todays CPU/GPU:s , i.e LN2/Liquid nitrogen etc...

Motherboard preperation and installation using a LN2/DI unit the clean and easy way


Here is another guide on how I prepare and insulate my motherboards when installing a ln2/di unit. Obviously there are many ways this can be done, some more involved than others. It doesn't have to be overdone, messy, or complicated. Some key things to remember are to isolate and seal off the socket area from outside air both on the top and bottom of the motherboard. Here is how I do it...clean and easy and I can't remeber the last time I have had a mobo die on me due to socket condensation, so most importantly THIS WORKS!

To start you will need these materials:
Pipe wrap insulation with the foil (lowes or home depot), round tube installation 1/2 inch 3/4 inch, scissors and a sharp blade, clear nail polish, "shop rags" or other heavy duty paper towel, and some thermal interface material (I like ceramique the best)


Now take your motherboard and apply the clear nail polish to all surface mount components all around the socket area, both top and bottom of the mobo. I marked off the bottom pic to give a good idea of the size of the area that needs to be considered for this. I will be using a 590sli lga775 board for this example:




While your waiting for the polish to dry, take your foil pipe wrap and cut out 2 gasket pads which will be used to seal off air from coming into the socket between surface mount componenets around the socket. You will make 2 indentical gaskets and stick them on top of each other, then stick them down and use a small thin tool to push the double gasket down in between the caps, inductors, and socket like in the second pic here:



Do the same for the bottom of the mobo making 2 pieces and sticking them together, then sticking them on the backside of the mobo:


Now depending on what cpu unit you are using the next few steps may vary slightly, but will still be just about the same procedure for mounting most units. Take your backplate and install the support rods for the container as well as the insulating piece of rubber that will seal off the backside socket area and prevent the aluminum plate from shorting out the mobo:



Now slide it through the mobo from the bottom and flip the mobo over to finish the installation:



Now we will make 2 more socket gaskets out of the shop rags that will catch and absorb any drips or moisture that might occur around the cpu if there is air getting through somewhere that you can't see. Stack them and slide them down the rods. These shop towels or any other heavy duty paper towel should be on every benchers shelf. They are excellent at wicking away moisture when it arises. I use them every time I bench in various ways:



Now we will make the main foam gasket that will surround the socket. Use the 1/2 sheet foam insulation for this step and center the hole for the unit right over the socket and just make sure the hole doesn't exceed the diameter of you cpu unit as we want to minimize any air space:



Time to install your cpu unit finally. Cover the speader of the chip with your tim of choice, and set your cpu container down on the center of the chip:


Now take your round pipe insulation that hopefully matches the outer diameter of your unit, and cut the lower piece that will go under the cpu holddown bracket. Make it oversized vertically, so when you slide the holdown bracket on top, it squeezes it down and compesses the foam down on the mobo as to seal off the socket area fom airflow:


Now slide down your hold down bracket and install the mounting hardware accordingly. In this case put down your shoulder spacers, then springs, top shoulder spacers, and finally thumbnuts:


Almost ready to bench now . Crank down the bracket nice and tight, add your top piece of insulation and your ready to go:


As a final step I will take some paper towel and fold it for a wrap that goes around the lower insulation under the hold down. It willl "catch" any run-off or condensation that forms on the hold down or outer insulation and prevent it from ever reaching the mobo:
SOME RELATED IMAGES :













THESE WILL REALLY HELP YOU OUT IF YOU ARE WILLING TO DO THIS :