Soft-sided environmental enclosure
View Patent ↗A cover for a rack to control the temperature of the contents of the rack is provided. The cover comprises a frame having a heater, a soft hood with a top and a bottom, the hood extending downward from the frame, and a duct fluidly connecting the heater to the bottom of the hood whereby the duct introduces heated air into the bottom of the hood. Also included is a method of controlling the temperature of a reaction using the cover of the present invention.
1. A cover for a rack to control the temperature of the contents of the rack comprising:
a frame having a temperature-controlling element, said frame adapted to be disposed above a rack;
a soft hood having a bottom, said hood extending downward from said frame; and
a duct fluidly connecting said temperature-controlling element to the bottom of said hood.
2. The cover of claim 1 wherein said temperature-controlling element is a heater.
3. The cover of claim 1 wherein said temperature-controlling element is a refrigeration device.
4. The cover of claim 1 further comprising a blower in said frame.
5. The cover of claim 1 wherein said frame has four sides and said hood has four sides, and each said hood side attaches to a respective frame side.
6. The cover of claim 1 wherein said frame is adapted to be attached to a wall or suspended from a ceiling.
7. The cover of claim 1 wherein said frame is adapted to be disposed on top of a laboratory bottle rack.
8. The cover of claim 1 wherein said hood has an openable front panel to allow insertion and removal of a rack.
9. The cover of claim 1 wherein said hood is comprised of a multi-layered material.
10. The cover of claim 9 wherein said hood is three-layered and one of the three layers is a thermal insulation.
11. The cover of claim 1 wherein said hood is one piece.
12. The cover of claim 1 comprising two ducts.
13. The cover of claim 1 wherein said duct is disposed outside of said hood.
14. A method of controlling the temperature of a reaction comprising the steps of:
(a) suspending a flexible hood from a frame to form an enclosed area below the frame;
(b) inserting a reaction vessel into the enclosed area;
(c) bringing air within the frame to a first desired temperature;
(d) passing the air from the frame to the bottom of the hood and into the enclosed area;
(e) taking up the air from the enclosed area at the top of the hood and bringing it back to said first temperature in the frame; and
(f) repeating steps (d) and (e) until a desired reaction is complete.
15. The method of step 14 wherein step (c) comprises warming air within the frame.