FedEx and slurpee shipping
J. Thomas Sapienza
something cold across the country. I had to first be transferred to the
Dangerous Materials department -- apparently dry ice is considered
dangerous (either that, or there's something in Slurpees we probably don't
want to know about).
Once I had convinced the woman at the Dangerous Stuff section that I wasn't
kidding and I really did want to ship a slurpee, she told me it would be as
simple as putting the Slurpeestuffs and the dry ice in a styrofoam cooler
and then packing that in a regular box. No additional charges: the only
cost would be the main shipping cost.
Good to have a free afternoon.
Tom
Xylen
"J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
>
> I called FedEx this afternoon and asked what it would take to mail
> something cold across the country. I had to first be transferred to the
> Dangerous Materials department -- apparently dry ice is considered
> dangerous (either that, or there's something in Slurpees we probably don't
> want to know about).
You guys have got to be kidding. But then again, maybe not. A few things
have come to mind re: the shipment.
1) Be sure to isolate the Slurpee from the dry-ice. Otherwise you may
end up with Carbon dioxide contamination. (Otherwise known as a
carbonated Slurpee)
2) Does your Fed-Ex route involve air travel? If so, consider the
implications of lower air pressure upon the evaporative speed of the dry
ice. Also the expansion of air nodules within the Slurpee matrix. Will
the increase in volume cause an overflow of a limited volume container?
In summary I would recommend a full isolation unit to contain the
Slurpee chemical matrix. This isolation unit should either maintain a
constant pressure or it must be of sufficient volume to accommodate the
expansion of the matrix at lowered air pressures. Additionally the outer
packing must accommodate the expansion of the solid Carbon dioxide as it
sublimates due to temperature variations and pressure degradation.
Or, you could drink some of the Slurpee, put it in a box, surround it
with dry ice and ship it. :)
Is this the sort of discussion that occurs on Friday evening at
Chicago's?
Too bad I have to work. It sounds like fun. :)
Xylen
--
We used to think a thousand monkeys on a thousand
typewriters could produce all of the works of
Shakespeare. Now, thanks to Usenet, we know this
is not true.
=================================================
Bradley Greager
> "J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
> >
> > I called FedEx this afternoon and asked what it would take to mail
> > something cold across the country. I had to first be transferred to the
> > Dangerous Materials department -- apparently dry ice is considered
> > dangerous (either that, or there's something in Slurpees we probably don't
> > want to know about).
>
> You guys have got to be kidding. But then again, maybe not. A few things
> have come to mind re: the shipment.
>
> 1) Be sure to isolate the Slurpee from the dry-ice. Otherwise you may
> <snip contamination and other possible side-effects>
> packing must accommodate the expansion of the solid Carbon dioxide as it
> sublimates due to temperature variations and pressure degradation.
Well, we did have the discussion on the isolation unit and just how exactly
such a thing would work. Fins were also mentioned to help draw heat off of the
slurpee, i.e. heat sinks like what's on yer cpu. This however might cool it too
much and freeze the slurpee, an equally negative effect to the aforementioned
carbon dioxide contamination. Per the expansion of the gasses as the solid
coolant sublimates, I think we discussed an outer containment unit, sort of a
buffer if you will, between the extreme cold of the ice and the warmth of the
cargo hold on one of them fedex trucks/planes. I thought further on this and
had the idea that maybe a vent might be used to keep the silly thing from
exploding. This would also help in your scenario, where there is possible
de-pressurization from altitude changes.
Short of a self-powered mini-fridge, I think the dry ice in the styrofoam is
as close as we'll get. Just remember to document it so's you can share with
the rest of us here :-)
--
\|/ _____ \|/ _
_ ` _ '
//// @~/ , o \~@ o' \,=./ `o
- (_) -
(o -) /_{ \_____/ }_ \ (o o)
' `
------------ooO--(_)--Ooo-----\___U_/------ooO--(_)--Ooo-----------------
bgre...@holly.colostate.edu
http://www.greager.com
Xylen
temperature controlled structure. (a thermos jug). This would provide a
controlled volume unit, as well as protection from carbon dioxide
contamination. The vacuum bottle could then be placed in a large
container with the dry ice. Additionally placing several green plants,
preferably ferns, in the box to help control the amount of gaseous
carbon dioxide.
However, other chemical agents could be included to interact with the
CO2 to prevent the explosive expansion. Care must be taken that excess
heat not be generated in these secondary reactions.
Don't ask me what chemicals, I'm a CoSci student, not a chemist. :)
btw, I don't normally respond this way to odd problems. I spent two
hours today explaining to an internet friend that the email she received
warning her about DiHydrous Oxide was just spam and the whole thing was
a joke. She still doesn't understand. :(
Ulf
a large part of the Slurpee appeal lies in the Slurpee
container. As such I would urge caution to anyone
attempting to deliver a Slurpee in anything other than the
original 7-Eleven Slurpee container with the semispherical
transparent polyurethane overflow retention cap. The
oversized cylindrical red straw with spooned end should also
be included. Furthermore, I'm uncertain of the rate at
which ferns metabolize carbon dioxide, but in a recent
study ferns exposed to Slurpees mutated into a previously
unknown species of carnivorous plant, much like the plant
in the movie musical "Little Shop of Horrors."
Ulf
J. Thomas Sapienza <sapi...@holly.ColoState.EDU> wrote in
message news:7rrr60$6...@holly.ColoState.EDU...
> I called FedEx this afternoon and asked what it would take
to mail
> something cold across the country. I had to first be
transferred to the
> Dangerous Materials department -- apparently dry ice is
considered
> dangerous (either that, or there's something in Slurpees
we probably don't
> want to know about).
>
Bradley Greager
Xylen wrote:
> <snip stuff about containment and explosives>
> btw, I don't normally respond this way to odd problems. I spent two
> hours today explaining to an internet friend that the email she received
> warning her about DiHydrous Oxide was just spam and the whole thing was
> a joke. She still doesn't understand. :(
>
If I get that dang spam-mail on water again, I think I'll explode!
Kathy Sankey
expected to endure. I'm an art student!!!! I barely can
get a slurpee to my car without a catastrophe.
Hey, maybe you guys could teach me how to tap the top of my
head and rub my stomach at the same time!!!!
Bradley Greager
topics of conversation to include you :-) i.e. wouldn't you like to
have a Sun Sparc 10 to do all of your real-time 3D rendering for
class? I know I would. Not to mention the fact that by now such
a machine should be able to exactly recreate the brush strokes
that were used by all the famous artists (you know, van Gogh,
Michelangelo and the rest of them that I can't spell).
I'm sure we could come up with more if you put us on the spot,
but I think we'd just be cool with the fact that somebody actually
showed up :-)
Kathy Sankey wrote:
--
Ulf
cargo planes these days. Otherwise someone's slurpee might
not arrive safely at its destination. Think about it.
wal...@lamar.colostate.edu
: The Slurpee matrix could be enclosed in a self contained, pressurized,
: temperature controlled structure. (a thermos jug). This would provide a
: controlled volume unit, as well as protection from carbon dioxide
: contamination. The vacuum bottle could then be placed in a large
: container with the dry ice. Additionally placing several green plants,
: preferably ferns, in the box to help control the amount of gaseous
: carbon dioxide.
But plants don't simply take up CO2 w/o expelling anything, else they
would explode ;) The basic photosynthetic process is
C02 + H20 -> CH20 + O2. CH20 being some sort of carbohydrate. The point
is that one mole of gas in, one mole of gas out. So you don't buy
anything with ferns.
The thermos is a good idea though.
: However, other chemical agents could be included to interact with the
: CO2 to prevent the explosive expansion. Care must be taken that excess
: heat not be generated in these secondary reactions.
: Don't ask me what chemicals, I'm a CoSci student, not a chemist. :)
As a chemist I'd suggest a somewhat less than hermetically sealed
container would allow the espcape of CO2. Not to burst anyone's bubble,
but there are all kinds of companies who ship food packed in dry ice, and
they don't use ferns or any other fancy tricks to avoid explosions.
But if you did want to hermetically seal the package, the CO2 may not just
keep subliming* until the package explodes if the package is strong
enough. CO2 will exist in some equilibrium between solid, liquid and gas,
depending on the temperature and pressure conditions. For example, CO2
tanks consist of liquid CO2 and a head space of gaseous CO2 that rests at
800-1000 psi under normal temperatures. Therefore the highest pressures
you would expect in the container are those. At the elevated temperatures
of air travel it could be less. In any case, the pressure the container
would have to withstand is probably less than you thought.
* Subliming is the verb form of sublime. Sublimate is the verb form of
sublimation, which is a purification technique where a compound is
sublimed under low pressure and then condensed onto a coldfinger.
Good Day,
--bjw
--
Brian J Walter | wal...@lamar.colostate.edu
Chem Graduate Student | CSU 38 - UNR 33
Colorado State Univ | Next up BYU, the first M-West game ever
Big Willy Style
: have a Sun Sparc 10 to do all of your real-time 3D rendering for
: class? I know I would. Not to mention the fact that by now such
the 20 i got access to cranks my seti data quite nicely :)
-big willy style
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| Willy Stroh re...@cnr.colostate.edu |
| PC/Unix Lab Technician http://lamar.colostate.edu/~saurus |
+----- -----+
| Put on your seat belt. I wanna try something. |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
R. Andy Baker
On Thu, 16 Sep 1999 22:04:20 -0600, "Ulf" <u...@viking.org> wrote:
>Xylen, you have some good ideas here. Please remember that
>a large part of the Slurpee appeal lies in the Slurpee
>container. As such I would urge caution to anyone
>attempting to deliver a Slurpee in anything other than the
>original 7-Eleven Slurpee container with the semispherical
>transparent polyurethane overflow retention cap. The
>oversized cylindrical red straw with spooned end should also
>be included. Furthermore, I'm uncertain of the rate at
>which ferns metabolize carbon dioxide, but in a recent
>study ferns exposed to Slurpees mutated into a previously
>unknown species of carnivorous plant, much like the plant
>in the movie musical "Little Shop of Horrors."
Another thing that you're all forgetting here is the number one,
single most important property of a Slurpee! THE MATRIX!!! You must
preserve the matrix. Even the casual observer will note that every
Slurpee machine constantly stirs the formula in order to maintain the
dual phase nature of the elixir. The stirring breaks up the ice
crystals that would normally freeze the dang thing solid.
So, clearly you would need some sort of battery powered stirring
machine as part of the package. The simplest design would mimic the
ones that we've all seen in chem. lecture that use a rotating magnetic
field to spin a bar magnet inside the beaker. However, that may not
be enough to keep the whole Slurpee from freezing solid. You could
also bastardize a couple of small Erector sets to create this machine,
but that's hardly glamorous. Any other ideas?
-Andy
"It doesn't make any sense to beat people to
keep them from getting hurt."
--Colorado State University Police Patrol
Capt. Bob Chaffe on the Denver Police action
following the 1999 CSU/CU game.
Remi Frazier
Whatsa matter, allergic to it?
-Remi
Bradley Greager
> If I make it to Old C's is this the type of conversation I'm
> expected to endure. I'm an art student!!!! I barely can
> get a slurpee to my car without a catastrophe.
Found a cool article for ya:
http://cnn.com/TECH/computing/9909/17/burningman3.idg/index.html
Michael Dwyer
: "J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
: You guys have got to be kidding. But then again, maybe not. A few things
: have come to mind re: the shipment.
I wonder this too....
: 1) Be sure to isolate the Slurpee from the dry-ice. Otherwise you may
: end up with Carbon dioxide contamination. (Otherwise known as a
: carbonated Slurpee)
In which case, the Slurpee turns into an Icee. This isn't a problem,
IMHO, since (as has already been established) I like Icee's better
anyway. The evolution goes a little like this:
KoolAid w/Ice->Slush Puppy->School Lunch Slush Puppy->Slurpee->Icee
: In summary I would recommend a full isolation unit to contain the
I fear we are all missing the POINT of a Slurpee. We all recognize that
it must remain cold, but we all seem to be missing what is the true magic
of the Slurpee -- what distinguishes it from both the frozen popsicle
and the liquid softdrink.
Slurpi (the plural, of course) are... well... slurpee. They constantly
hover around that metaphysical state of being frozen, while still liquid.
In the interest of the common good, I did a little slurpee research
today. Here's what I found:
o A slurpee machine is a modified soft-serv ice cream machine. It works
by freezing a fluid to the walls of a stainless steel cylinder, while
constantly scraping these crystals off and stirring them.
o Once the slurpee leaves its home, it quickly begins to melt. The
crystals break down into a fluid in the bottom of the cup. This is
kind of unsightly, and is the prime reason that 7-11 should nix those
clear cups...
o Keeping the slurpee in sub-zero temperatures has the undesired effect
of causing the crystals to begin clumping together into larger and
larger crystals. The slurpee loses it smooth texture, and it begins
to resemble a School Lunch Slush Puppy (The ones that use apple jiuce
ice instead of just water. Yuck.)
.: Therefore, what we want to do is keep the temperature depressed enough
to prevent the breakdown of the crystaline structure, while keeping
the crystals from growing.
Some options:
o A mini-slurpee machine! A cylinder surrounded by dry ice, with a scraper
blade stirring it. This would require power, and FedEx would freak.
o Something to prevent crystal formation! The problem is that Ethylene Glycol
--though tasty-- would probably not be a good idea. Salt has the opposite
problem...
Here's an easier option:
o Ship *HIS* ass closer to a Slurpee machine.
--
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Michael J. Dwyer I doubt, therefore I might be.
mdw...@holly.ColoState.edu http://WWW.CS.ColoState.EDU/~dwyer/
Frozen Confection Scientist CSU.General Resident Goon
Adam Carheden
"J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
>
> I called FedEx this afternoon and asked what it would take to mail
> something cold across the country. I had to first be transferred to the
> Dangerous Materials department -- apparently dry ice is considered
> dangerous (either that, or there's something in Slurpees we probably don't
> want to know about).
My question is why the hell would anyone need to ship a a Slurpee?
7-Elevens are one of the most common facets of the American landscape.
You can't drive three city blocks without seeing one. They're open
24/7, including Christmas. If this is inside the country, as you
implied, why can't whoever your shipping it to get his own Slurpee?
Michael Dwyer
: "J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
: My question is why the hell would anyone need to ship a a Slurpee?
: 7-Elevens are one of the most common facets of the American landscape.
They're in Japan, too. Except they are called "Sayben Eerayben" :)
And they sell Dreamcast consoles there...
: You can't drive three city blocks without seeing one. They're open
: 24/7, including Christmas. If this is inside the country, as you
Oh yeah? If that's so, why do they put locks on the doors?!
--
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Michael J. Dwyer I doubt, therefore I might be.
mdw...@holly.ColoState.edu http://WWW.CS.ColoState.EDU/~dwyer/
Computer Science Major Amateur Radio Tech N0ZAP
R. Andy Baker
<carh...@holly.colostate.edu> wrote:
>My question is why the hell would anyone need to ship a a Slurpee?
>7-Elevens are one of the most common facets of the American landscape.
>You can't drive three city blocks without seeing one. They're open
>24/7, including Christmas. If this is inside the country, as you
>implied, why can't whoever your shipping it to get his own Slurpee?
Good god man! For the challenge! For the Adventure! For the look on
their face when you try to insure it for $0.99! For the sheer joy of
imagining the recipients face as they unrap a Slurpee that was wrapped
up better than a live human heart!
Okay, so I don't really know what's going on, but I still stand by the
above answers.
Xylen
Michael Dwyer wrote:
> I fear we are all missing the POINT of a Slurpee. We all recognize that
> it must remain cold, but we all seem to be missing what is the true magic
> of the Slurpee -- what distinguishes it from both the frozen popsicle
> and the liquid softdrink.
>
> Slurpi (the plural, of course) are... well... slurpee. They constantly
> hover around that metaphysical state of being frozen, while still liquid.
So this has become a question of maintaining the metaphysical properties
of a childhood memory, represented by the physical action of shipping a
Slurpee. In the interests of philosophy, I would question the need for
the physical action. Is it not enough to enjoy fond memories of a
Slurpee, or are people attempting to achieve the nirvana of the perfect
Slurpee?
Actually, I haven't had a slurpee in years, but this thread has made me
thirsty for one. Now I just have to walk 6 blocks to get a perfect 7-11
Slurpee, or I can go across the street and get an Icee..... Perfection
will wait for another day, I'm going across the street. :)
Xylen
John Erickson
> Oh yeah? If that's so, why do they put locks on the doors?!
A friend of mine actually workd at a 7-11 for quite some time. One of
the nights that I was in there getting a reduced cost Slurpee I gave him
a hard time about the door locks. He said that he's only seen it locked
once, rather soon after they had been robbed.
ObSlurpee: No slurpee machines were harmed in the incident.
ObCrooksAreStupid: The robber was caught soon after behind the building
where we has hiding and counting the $50 or so he
took from the store.
--
-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-
John Erickson jeri...@holly.colostate.edu
Black Sands Consulting Computer Science Major
"It should be illegal to yell 'Y2K' in a crowded economy"
- Larry Wall, creator of Perl
-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-
Michael Dwyer
: Michael Dwyer <mdw...@holly.colostate.edu> wrote:
: ObSlurpee: No slurpee machines were harmed in the incident.
: ObCrooksAreStupid: The robber was caught soon after behind the building
: where we has hiding and counting the $50 or so he
: took from the store.
: ObCrooksAreEvenMoreStupidInLeadville: In Leadville, a guy robbed the
ex-7-11 store (Called Kum & Go -
how sad is that?) He thought he
was pretty clever with nudging the
security camera away, but the police
still saw everything in the reflection
in the glass fridge doors.
They clearly saw the clerk and the
"robber" working together...
J. Thomas Sapienza
in this thread, and he's loved it. Unfortunately, the attempt to crosspost
to uiuc.general failed, becauce uiuc is a bunch of jerks vis-a-vis their ng
policy.
Anyway, here's a response from matt regarding all the posts:
-----------------
Michael Dwyer:
You can't seriously say you like Icees better than slurpees?! It can't
be!!!! This is one of two truths in life (slurpees rule other semi-frozen
drinks), with the other being that The Rock is the best movie ever made.
They've started teaching those in my physics class here, so it must be a
law or something. However, I did enjoy the analysis of how the slurpee is
made, as I was unaware of that.
Adam Carheden:
I know! I can't believe it either, but there is no 7-11 in
Champaign-Urbana, IL or any surrounding areas. I've checked in the
phonebooks, asked around and even wrote the company to determine if a
slurpee was nearby. It's simply not!!!!! In fact, a large number of
7-11's throughout the midwest have been bought out by a company known as
Kum & Go.
<tom would like to interject at this point and invite anyone to make snide
remarks regarding the company name>
OK, that's it for the personal replies.
We'll be documenting the slurpee shipment and posting the results (and
probably some of these posts) on the web, along with photos. Now I just
need to get my camera fixed.
I think I should start a slurpee fan club online. Thanks for all the
help, and REJOICE! for you are all lucky enough to be living in a town
with over seven 7-11's, meaning one is normally no more than a mile away!
Only 3 months til I'm back, baby!
Matt (mmwr...@students.uiuc.edu)
www.mattwright.com
Xylen
university, I have started a small Slurpee discussion at csu.pl.305F.
This ng is for the discussion of philosophy of Artificial Intelligence.
However, we have found slurpees to to be important to our discussion.
"What this has to do with the Fed-Ex-ing of a slurpee and how shipping
affects the magic that is the difference between a slurpee and a
popsicle is somehow like the difference between intelligence and
artificial intelligence".
> Unfortunately, the attempt to crosspost
> to uiuc.general failed, becauce uiuc is a bunch of jerks vis-a-vis their ng
> policy.
> I think I should start a slurpee fan club online. Thanks for all the
> help, and REJOICE! for you are all lucky enough to be living in a town
> with over seven 7-11's, meaning one is normally no more than a mile away!
> Only 3 months til I'm back, baby!
> Matt (mmwr...@students.uiuc.edu)
> www.mattwright.com
Xylen
Michael Dwyer
: Michael Dwyer:
: You can't seriously say you like Icees better than slurpees?! It can't
: be!!!! This is one of two truths in life (slurpees rule other semi-frozen
: drinks), with the other being that The Rock is the best movie ever made.
Hah! Die, unbeliever!!
: Kum & Go.
: <tom would like to interject at this point and invite anyone to make snide
: remarks regarding the company name>
In LXV, we call them "Ejaculate and Evacuate". I want to point out that
I reserved that comment until the invitation. You should be impressed.
: I think I should start a slurpee fan club online. Thanks for all the
: help, and REJOICE! for you are all lucky enough to be living in a town
: with over seven 7-11's, meaning one is normally no more than a mile away!
And we've got Walrus, too... Nyah!
Remi Frazier
"J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
> Once I had convinced the woman at the Dangerous Stuff section that I wasn't
> kidding and I really did want to ship a slurpee, she told me it would be as
> simple as putting the Slurpeestuffs and the dry ice in a styrofoam cooler
> and then packing that in a regular box. No additional charges: the only
> cost would be the main shipping cost.
Wait, wait wait. I was sitting in the library tonight trying NOT to think
about statmech, an dI had this terrible thought.
"Put the Slurpeestuffs and the dry ice in a styrofoam cooler and then pack that
in a regular box."
Again:
"...the dry ice in a styrofoam cooler and then pack that in a regular box."
When dry ice warms, it turns into gas; a material typically has a much larger
volume as a gas than as a solid. So, we ship this thing across the country,
and somewhere around Kansas, BOOM!
That's _bad_, mkay?
-Remi
J. Thomas Sapienza
Thank you, Remi, for pointing out that I forgot a wee bit of the
conversation with FedEx lady. She told me to plan for that by leaving
vents in the cooler and box for the dry ice.
Tom
Ulf
> That's _bad_, mkay?
Nice usage of "mkay." I admire that. I love professors who
end every sentence with mkay, mkay?
Michael A. Schulman
look od to the FedEx people to be carrying around a box with vents with gas leaking
out of them?
"J. Thomas Sapienza" wrote:
--
***** *
**** Michael A Schulman **
*** msch...@holly.colostate.edu ***
** holly.colostate.edu/~mschulma/ ****
* *****
J. Thomas Sapienza
> I know this is an old thread and probably shouldn't be resurrected, but wouldn't it
> look od to the FedEx people to be carrying around a box with vents with gas leaking
> out of them?
I called FedEx and had to talk to the dangerous goods folks -- I guess
Slurpees are more powerful than we imagined -- and that's how they told
me to do it.
Tom
R. Andy Baker
So, what is the current status of the project?