Coffee Joulies
Encyclopedia
Coffee Joulies are small, stainless-steel capsules of phase change material
Phase Change Material
A phase-change material is a substance with a high heat of fusion which, melting and solidifying at a certain temperature, is capable of storing and releasing large amounts of energy...

 designed to be placed in a covered, insulated container cup of coffee to keep it at a drinkable temperature for a longer period of time. They came out of a Kickstarter
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an online threshold pledge system for funding creative projects. Kickstarter has funded a diverse array of endeavors, ranging from indie film and music to journalism, solar energy technology and food-related projects.-Model:...

 project launched by Dave Petrillo and Dave Jackson in Tahoe City, California
Tahoe City, California
Tahoe City is an unincorporated community in Placer County, California. Tahoe City is located on Lake Tahoe, southeast of Donner Pass. It lies at an elevation of 6250 feet ....

.

The Kickstarter project launched around March 27, 2011 and was fully funded three days later, even though the funding target didn't need to be met for thirty days. After the early success of the Kickstarter project, Petrillo left Lutron Electronics Company to focus on the production, which will occur at Sherrill Manufacturing in Sherrill, New York
Sherrill, New York
Sherrill is a city in Oneida County, New York, United States. With a population of 3,147 , it is the least populous city in the state. Sherill is located at the western end of the Town of Vernon on Route 5. Sherrill is referred to as The Silver City.-History:Sherrill was founded in 1916 through a...

. The team decided to continue with production in the United States, rather than moving to Mexico, as was their initial plan.

The project was at 300% of the target funding level by April 1, 2011. , the project had raised $128,000 by 2200 backers, while the original project target was only $9500, and the dies for stamping were expected to cost $20,000.

The phase change material used has a melting point
Melting point
The melting point of a solid is the temperature at which it changes state from solid to liquid. At the melting point the solid and liquid phase exist in equilibrium. The melting point of a substance depends on pressure and is usually specified at standard atmospheric pressure...

 of 140 °F (60 °C).

Further reading

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