RU2611576C1 - Method of installation of equipment in a glove box, contaminated with toxic substances - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: safety.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to handling toxic substances, including radioactive substances. Method of installation of equipment in a glove box, contaminated with toxic substances, comprises preliminary deactivation of a part of the box inner wall. Insulating metal cap with a glued elastic gasket is installed on the side of the open end. It is pressed with force, sufficient for tight contact of the elastic gasket with the inner surface of the box. Outside the box in the selected area, openings are made for installation of the equipment. After installation of the equipment, the cap is removed. Prior to loading the insulating cap in the glove box, a protective film is glued on the outer surface of the elastic gasket, directly prior to installation of the insulating cap, said film is removed.

EFFECT: invention provides safe reworking of the glove box with formation of additional openings and time depressurization of inner space of the box, contaminated with toxic substances.

3 cl, 1 dwg

Description

The invention relates to a technology for the treatment of toxic substances, including sources of ionizing radiation, and in particular to ways and methods of ensuring radiation safety.

In accordance with the sanitary rules / Basic sanitary rules for ensuring radiation safety (OSPORB-99) SP 2.6.1.799-99, Ministry of Health of Russia, M., 2000, 99 pp. / (Hereinafter the Rules) technological equipment for working with radioactive substances must satisfy the following requirements (see clause 3.3.7):

- the design must be reliable and convenient in operation, possess the necessary tightness;

- be made of durable corrosion-resistant and radiation-resistant materials that are easy to decontaminate;

- the external and internal surfaces of the equipment must be accessible for decontamination.

The above rules also determine the safety requirements when working with open sources of radiation (see paragraph 3.8.19 of the Rules):

- production operations with radioactive substances in chambers and boxes should be carried out by remote means or using gloves hermetically mounted in the front wall.

Typically, sealed glove boxes for working with radioactive materials are made of stainless steel sheet, the inner walls are polished to ensure their deactivation and consist of a working chamber, a loading airlock, an inspection window, glove openings with covers, various electrical connectors and gas inlets installed on the walls of the working chamber .

A well-known compact stainless vacuum glove box SPEX GBVK-4 /http://www.spectrosystems.ru/laborator y / vac_boxes .shtml / is known , which has special vacuum covers on glove ports that make it possible to achieve a high vacuum state (10 ^-2 mm Hg) in the working volume before filling with inert gas and prevent the inflation of rubber gloves in the process of pumping air from the working volume.

In the practice of working with exposed radioactive materials using sealed glove boxes, it is often necessary to equip them with systems requiring the connection of devices inside the box with peripheral devices outside the box or devices that must be installed on the walls or top of the glove boxes. This can be installations, some of which should be located outside and should be accessible for maintenance, various sealed inlets for supplying liquids, electrical connectors, etc. To do this, make holes of various configurations and sizes in the walls of the working chamber, and then install the necessary devices. In this case, the glove box may be in operation for some time, and its inner surface is already contaminated with radionuclides. Complete decontamination of the inner surfaces of the box, due to the presence of cavities and mates, is impossible. Therefore, the additional equipment of the box with additional devices is either associated with the risk of radioactive contamination of personnel and the environment, or requires the disposal of old and the purchase of new equipment, which is associated with significant costs.

Known technological chamber with a transport box / p. RF №2294031 with a priority of 05/20/2005, publ. 02/20/2007 /, comprising a housing with hatches made in it, to which protective gloves are attached, and a viewing window. The housing of the process chamber is equipped with an access hatch cover with a gasket in contact with the closed entrance hatch with a gasket installed on the annular protrusion of the entrance hatch and the end face of the transport box lid with the formation of a gap between the technological camera manhole and the transport box lid. A through hole is made in the central part of the access hatch cover with a fitting installed in it. On the outer surface of the wall of the process chamber facing the transport box, an annular groove is made in which a gasket is placed in contact with the end surface of the flange of the transport box. A shelf for the workpiece is attached to the rear wall of the cover of the transport box.

A method of installing additional equipment in a known process chamber was not found.

The technical result of the invention is the ability to safely install equipment in an airtight glove box, contaminated from the inside with radionuclides or other toxic substances.

The technical result is achieved by the fact that according to the method of installing the equipment in a glove box contaminated with toxic substances, part of the inner wall of the box is pre-deactivated, then an insulating metal cap with an elastic gasket glued on the open end side is pressed and pressed with a force sufficient to tightly fit the elastic gasket to the inner surface of the box. Outside the box in the selected area, work is done on the manufacture of openings through which the equipment is installed, after its installation, the hood is dismantled. The insulating cap can be pressed against the wall of the box with the help of a sliding stop resting on the opposite wall of the box. In order to isolate the surface of the elastic pad from contact with toxic substances inside the box, a protective film can be glued to the outer surface of the elastic pad before being loaded into the glove box, which is removed immediately before installing the insulating cap. This reduces the likelihood of contamination of personnel with radionuclides in the manufacture of openings in the wall of the box.

The insulating cap limits the box space to the so-called “clean” zone, which contacts the environment when making holes in the box wall needed to install equipment (electrical connectors, fittings for liquids or gas, etc.).

Thus, the claimed invention enables the safe installation of equipment in an airtight glove box contaminated with toxic substances.

In FIG. 1 shows a diagram of an implementation of a method for the safe installation of equipment in an airtight glove box contaminated with toxic substances, where:

1 - boxing;

2 - an insulating cap;

3 - elastic gasket;

4 - a sliding emphasis.

The proposed method is implemented as follows.

An elastic gasket 3 is glued onto the open end of the sealed insulating cap 2 (shown in FIG. 1 as a hollow chamber with a bottom). Thus, the insulating cap 2 and the elastic gasket 3 form a closed cavity, which when loaded into the box 1 does not come into contact with objects inside Boxing 1 contaminated with toxic substances. Zone A of the inner surface of box 1 is deactivated to the minimum possible value. The outer surface of the elastic strip 3 to protect it from contamination with radionuclides can be pasted over with a removable protective film (not shown). Before installing the cap, the protective film is removed from the outer surface of the elastic gasket 3 and the insulating cap 2 with the elastic gasket 3 glued onto its open end is installed close to zone A of the inner surface of the box 1. Then, the insulating cap 2 is pressed against zone A of the inner surface of the box 1, for example, with the help of a sliding stop 4, resting on the opposite wall of the box 1. After that, in the area A outside the box 1 are made openings for equipment (not shown). The profile of the open end of the insulating cap 2 with glued elastic gasket 3 should correspond to the profile of zone A of the inner surface of the box 1. In FIG. 1 shows a variant of a straight profile. After installation and sealing of the equipment, the insulating cap 2 with the elastic gasket 3 and the sliding stop 4 are dismantled.

Thanks to the claimed combination of features of the invention, it becomes possible to safely install equipment in a sealed glove box contaminated with toxic substances.

A prototype of the equipment was manufactured, tested, the results confirmed the operability of the equipment and obtaining a new technical result.

Claims (3)

1. The method of installing the equipment in a glove box contaminated with toxic substances, which consists in the fact that part of the inner wall of the box is pre-deactivated, then an insulating metal cap with a glued elastic gasket on the open end side is installed and pressed with a force sufficient to tightly fit the elastic gasket to on the inner surface of the box, on the outside of the box in the selected area, work is carried out on the manufacture of at least one opening in which the equipment is installed After installation the hood is dismantled. 2. The method according to p. 1, characterized in that the insulating cap is pressed against the wall of the box with the help of a sliding stop resting on the opposite wall of the box. 3. The method according to p. 1, characterized in that before loading the insulating cap in the glove box on the outer surface of the elastic strip, a protective film is glued, which is removed immediately before installing the insulating cap.

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