Claims
- 1. An immersion cleaning apparatus suitable for removing small particles from an article, the apparatus comprising:
- a. a housing comprising an immersion sump for receiving an article to be cleaned;
- b. inflow means for conducting fluid into the housing;
- c. outflow means for conducting fluid from the immersion sump out of the housing;
- d. first particle-detection means, coupled to the inflow means, for detecting, in a fluid flowing through the inflow means, a concentration of particles larger than a predetermined minimum size;
- e. second particle-detection means, coupled to the outflow means, for detecting, in a fluid flowing through the outflow means, a concentration of particles larger than the predetermined size; and
- f. reporting means for displaying the particle concentrations detected by the first and second particle-detection means.
- 2. The cleaning apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:
- a. a vessel for containing a cleaning fluid;
- b. a first inflow conduit coupling the vessel to the inflow means;
- c. a first outflow conduit coupling the vessel to the outflow means and arranged to conduct fluid from the immersion sump to the vessel; and
- d. means for pumping fluid from the vessel through the first inflow conduit and into the inflow means.
- 3. The cleaning apparatus of claim 2 wherein the vessel is positioned below the immersion sump and fluid drains by gravity through the first outflow conduit into the vessel.
- 4. The cleaning apparatus of claim 1 further comprising means for agitating a liquid in the immersion sump.
- 5. The cleaning apparatus of claim 4 wherein the agitation means is an ultrasonic transducer.
- 6. The cleaning apparatus of claim 4 wherein the agitation means is a spray nozzle.
- 7. The cleaning apparatus of claim 1 wherein the particle-detection means include UV spectrophotometers.
- 8. The cleaning apparatus of claim 7 further comprising a cleaning fluid that is substantially transparent to UV radiation.
- 9. The cleaning apparatus of claim 8 wherein the cleaning fluid is a fluorinated liquid.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising means for filtering fluid before the fluid reaches the housing.
- 11. An immersion cleaning apparatus suitable for removing small particles from an article the apparatus comprising:
- a. a housing comprising an immersion sump for receiving an article to be cleaned;
- b. inflow means for conducting fluid into the housing;
- c. outflow means for conducting fluid from the immersion sump out of the housing;
- d. first particle-detection means, coupled to the inflow means, for detecting a particle concentration in a fluid flowing through the inflow means;
- e. second particle-detection means, coupled to the outflow means, for detecting a particle concentration in a fluid flowing through the outflow means; and
- f. a vessel for containing a cleaning fluid;
- g. a first inflow conduit coupling the vessel to the inflow means;
- h. a first outflow conduit coupling the vessel to the outflow means and arranged to conduct fluid from the immersion sump to the vessel;
- i. means for pumping fluid from the vessel through the first inflow conduit and into the immersion sump;
- j. a second vessel for containing a rinse fluid;
- k. a second inflow conduit coupling the second vessel to the inflow means;
- l. a second outflow conduit;
- m. means for pumping fluid from the second vessel through the second inflow conduit and into the immersion sump; and
- n. cycle control means for operating the pumping means to circulate, in a first cycle, the cleaning fluid from the first vessel to the immersion sump and back to the first vessel, and thereafter, in a second cycle, to circulate the rinse fluid from the second vessel into and out of the immersion sump.
- 12. The cleaning apparatus of claim 11 wherein:
- a. the control means is coupled to the particle-detection means; and
- b. the control means terminates the first cycle and initiates the second cycle based on the particle concentrations detected by the first and second particle-detection means.
- 13. The cleaning apparatus of claim 11 further comprising reporting means for displaying the particle concentrations detected by the first and second particle-detection means.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 11 further comprising means for filtering fluid before the fluid reaches the housing.
- 15. An immersion cleaning apparatus suitable for removing from an article small particles that emit a detectable signal, the apparatus comprising:
- a. a housing comprising an immersion sump for receiving an article to be cleaned;
- b. inflow means for conducting fluid into the housing;
- c. outflow means for conducting fluid from the immersion sump out of the housing;
- d. means for detecting the signal emitted by the particles on the article; and
- e. reporting means for displaying the magnitude of the detected signal, said magnitude being indicative of particle concentration on the article.
- 16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the particles are radioactive and the detection means is a scintillation detector.
- 17. The cleaning apparatus of claim 15 wherein the cleaning fluid is a fluorinated liquid.
Government Interests
This invention was made with Government support under Air Force contract F04704-92-C-0017 and Nuclear Regulatory Commission contract 04-93-106. The Government has certain rights in this invention.
US Referenced Citations (9)
Foreign Referenced Citations (8)
Number |
Date |
Country |
55-103608 |
Aug 1980 |
JPX |
56-97512 |
Aug 1981 |
JPX |
60-21798 |
Feb 1985 |
JPX |
60-16275 |
Apr 1985 |
JPX |
60-163689 |
Aug 1985 |
JPX |
61-25599 |
Feb 1986 |
JPX |
62-259442 |
Nov 1987 |
JPX |
2-107296 |
Apr 1990 |
JPX |