Patent · US Expired

Contamination analysis unit

US5521381A · kind A · utility

13Cited by
3References
16Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateDec 12, 1994
Grant dateMay 28, 1996
Priority date
Expiry dateDec 12, 2014

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH01J49/04
  • WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

The portable Contamination Analysis Unit (CAU) measures trace quantifies of surface contamination in real time. The detector head of the portable contamination analysis unit has an opening with an O-ring seal, one or more vacuum valves and a small mass spectrometer. With the valve closed, the mass spectrometer is evacuated with one or more pumps. The O-ring seal is placed against a surface to be tested and the vacuum valve is opened. Data is collected from the mass spectrometer and a portable computer provides contamination analysis. The CAU can be used to decontaminate and decommission hazardous and radioactive surface by measuring residual hazardous surface contamination, such as tritium and trace organics It provides surface contamination data for research and development applications as well as real-time process control feedback for industrial cleaning operations and can be used to determine the readiness of a surface to accept bonding or coatings.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.