Are Corning cryogenic vials safe for use in liquid nitrogen?
NO! For safety and mimimising risk of injury to laboratory personnel, screw cap cryogenic vials (glass or plastic from any manufacturer!) should never be used for storage submerged in liquid nitrogen. Store vials in the VAPOR PHASE ONLY, above the level of the liquid nitrogen. In general, it should be remembered that cryogenic liquids are extremely cold and that a small amount of volume of liquid produces a large volume of gas. Thus, since vials stored in liquid nitrogen occasionally leak, they may quickly explode when they are removed from the freezer and returned to room temperature. Because of the extremely low temperatures of cryogenic liquids and their vapors, direct skin or eye contact can result in severe damage to tissues similar to burn injuries. The most commonly used cryogenic liquid is liquid nitrogen which has a temperature of -196°C.
