Claims
- 1. Apparatus for detecting alpha contamination on the surface of metal articles comprising;
- a housing having an entrance chamber, a detection chamber and an exit chamber;
- means disposed within the housing and at least in part passing through said chambers for conveying the articles through said chambers;
- means for electrically grounding at least the part of said conveying means passing through said detection chamber;
- means for supplying an ionizing gas to said detection chamber;
- an anode in said detection chamber;
- an electrical supply connected to said anode for charging said anode and establishing an electrical field in said detection chamber;
- a pulse counter coupled to said anode for detecting pulses produced by ionization of the gas by alpha particles; and
- means carried by said housing for substantially confining the ionizing gas in said detection chamber and restricting outflow thereof through said entrance and exit chambers.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said conveying means includes a grounded metal conveyor belt.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said container for said detection chamber is made of stainless steel.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said ionizing gas supplied to said detection chamber includes a mixture of about 90% argon and about 10% methane.
Parent Case Info
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 239,227, filed Feb. 27, 1981.
Government Interests
The Government has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. EY-76-C-11-0014 between the Department of Energy and Westinghouse Electric Corporation.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
239227 |
Feb 1981 |
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