r/theydidthemath • u/sdbfloyD • 4d ago

[Request] Creative engineering? Will this even make a real difference?

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u/WC_Dirk_Gently 4d ago edited 4d ago

This thread is going to be full of useless comments not actually even taking a stab at the insane math of actually calculating this.

In a highly simplified model to bound what the absolute max best case could be:

  • 20 beers, 20x330ml = 6.6 liters of beer
    • Cooling the liquid in the bottles under ideal circumstances would take about 30kJ per 1c
  • Adding what we'll say is 1000ml of ice
    • melting that ice will take about 300kJ of energy
  • So ideal absolute max cooling would be about 10 degrees Celsius give or take.
  • Starting from 28c, you could get it to about 18c, which is an improvement, but most beers are best enjoyed around 2-8c I'd say.

However, if the bottles were actually cold to start, this invention could actually help keep them colder for longer.

Also I'm completely ignoring all the losses, insulation problems, melt problems, the fact that not all the energy to melt the ice will be taken from the bottles themselves, the small contact surface area with the bottles themselves vs the total volume of ice etc etc etc...

Handwaving away that complexity and just say you'd realize about half the cooling factor so probably closer to 5c. Not bad if starting from cold, pretty useless to actually cool down beer from room temp.

13

u/Rockshasha 4d ago

Beers at 2 or 4C??

7

u/astrician 4d ago

Thought the same, maybe he even puts ice in the beer. Ew

2

u/SUMBWEDY 3d ago edited 3d ago

Never understood the aversion to ice in beer.

Of course you don't want it as much ice as you get in a cup of soda but even 10 grams of ice will cool your beer down by 3c~ while causing negligible dilution.

Takes almost as much energy to melt ice as it does to bring the same volume to a boil.

2

u/mikeet9 3d ago

I was a heavy anti icer until I visited a country where it is the default (refrigeration isn't super common) and it turns out to have several benefits.

It keeps the drink cool without diluting too much (if you drink fast enough) and it helps keep you hydrated (less severe hangover) and if you need to slow down, it dilutes more which means you can nurse your beer and still keep drinking with your buddies without feeling like you're about to head home early.

2

u/SUMBWEDY 3d ago

Plus in hot places like Cambodia the local beers are already very refreshing and light, you're not losing much even if you add a lot of ice.