Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids – Process – With nondrying treating of material
Patent
1998-01-16
2000-03-14
Gravini, Stephen
Drying and gas or vapor contact with solids
Process
With nondrying treating of material
34403, 34 61, 34 68, 34202, 34227, F26B 700
Patent
active
060355492
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to the close protection of a work position located in a contaminated atmosphere in a general manner, and more particularly a process and device for close protection of products sensitive to contamination by contaminating agents transported by the environment, said products being positioned on a working surface.
The problem of protecting work positions from airborne contamination arises particularly in the food processing industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and in hospital environments.
This type of problem is usually solved by placing work positions in so-called "sterile" rooms in which air is filtered and processed such that the dust level is kept below an allowable controlled limit subject to severe regulations.
Furthermore, the air that circulates in these sterile rooms is frequently regulated at a low temperature.
Personnel who need to work at this type of work position must wear special clothing that is inconvenient to put on and to wear.
Close protection of each individual work position is one solution to the disadvantages mentioned above.
However, this close protection must take account of the fact that personnel working at these work positions must take manual action on products sensitive to airborne contamination. This means that it is impossible to provide this type of close protection by a vertical flow of sterile air the same size as or larger than the position to be protected so that said station is entirely covered with sterile air, since this flow would carry the contamination on operator's hands and forearms onto the products.
Within this context, the invention proposes a new process for close protection of products sensitive to airborne contamination, these products being positioned on a working surface, by which at least one stream of decontaminated gas is blown on each side of said products, approximately parallel to said working surface, towards said products, each gas stream being evacuated from the working surface starting from a median region located between the edges of said working surface along a direction approximately perpendicular to said working surface, or conversely at least one stream of decontaminated gas is blown above the working surface in a median region of the working surface located between the edges of this working surface along a direction approximately perpendicular to said working surface towards said products, each gas stream being evacuated from the working surface along a direction approximately parallel to said working surface on each side of said products.
Thus, products positioned on the working surface are isolated from the contaminated environment by a flow of decontaminated gas surrounding them, and which flows either vertically downwards towards the working surface and then transversely towards the edges of said working surface, or starting from the edges of said working surface transversely towards said products, and then vertically upwards from said working surface.
The contamination introduced by personnel working on sensitive products positioned on the working surface is then automatically drawn by the decontaminated gas flow along one of the paths, away from said working surface without this contamination reaching said products.
Furthermore, note that the dimensions of each flow stream are optimized.
According to one embodiment of the process according to the invention, products are laid out along a horizontal direction X, and two decontaminated gas streams are directed towards said products, from each side of said X direction along a Y direction approximately transverse to said X direction, said gas streams being evacuated along a vertical Z direction approximately perpendicular to said X direction, or conversely a decontaminated gas stream is directed towards said products along the vertical Z direction approximately perpendicular to said X direction, said gas stream being evacuated along the Y direction approximately transverse to said X direction on each side of said X direction.
According to a particularly beneficial
REFERENCES:
patent: 4021928 (1977-05-01), Johnson
patent: 4750276 (1988-06-01), Smith et al.
patent: 4872400 (1989-10-01), Brown et al.
patent: 5211106 (1993-05-01), Lucke
patent: 5314509 (1994-05-01), Kato et al.
patent: 5351415 (1994-10-01), Brooks et al.
patent: 5382127 (1995-01-01), Garric et al.
patent: 5411358 (1995-05-01), Garric et al.
patent: 5628121 (1997-05-01), Brooks et al.
patent: 5724748 (1998-03-01), Brooks et al.
Chevalier Christophe
Chevalier Mathieu
Gravini Stephen
Ultra Propre Nutrition Industrie Recherche (U.N.I.R.)
LandOfFree
Close contamination protection device and method thereof for foo does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Close contamination protection device and method thereof for foo, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Close contamination protection device and method thereof for foo will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-158448