Yes, Cleatech is Cleanroom Classification (ISO5).
A Laminar Flow Hood is an enclosed bench designed to prevent the contamination of semiconductor wafers, biological samples, or any particle sensitive materials. The direction of the airflow protects the sample from contaminations. Laminar Flow Hoods are usually made from stainless steel material with no gaps or joints where spores might collect.
Cleatech manufactures horizontal and vertical configuration. Visit our Laminar Flow Hood product page for specifications.
There are two main types of laminar flow hoods, horizontal and vertical. In a horizontal laminar flow hood, clean air moves from a filter located behind the work surface towards the operator. Where a vertical laminar flow hood directs filtered air downwards towards the work surface
Air is filtered with either a HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) or a ULPA (Ultra-Low Particulate Air) filter.
Laminar Flow Hoods are suitable for a variety of applications where clean air and sterile environment is required. Perfect for medical and research laboratories. Visit our Laminar Flow Hood product page for specifications.
Cleatech offers two types of filters with our flow hoods.
To minimize the loss of nitrogen and prevent contamination inflow while parts are moved between chambers, we recommend equipping your glove box with airlocks. These airlocks are mounted to either the left or right side of a transfer chamber.
Acrylic Glove Boxes can be cleaned periodically with lukewarm water and a clean nonabrasive cloth. A mild nonabrasive detergent may be used if needed. Use light pressure when cleaning your glove box. If the outside surface is exceptionally dirty or gritty, rinse the surface by lightly swabbing a saturated cloth over the unit. Avoid vigorous rubbing as this can damage the glove box. To dry the acrylic surface use a clean, dry cloth and gently blot the surface.
If the inside of a glove box needs to be cleaned, use water and dry the inside surface thoroughly. After the inside is dry purge the cabinet with nitrogen for several hours before reintroducing moisture-sensitive stored materials.
Instructions can also be found on the back of your glove box.
CAUTION! DO NOT USE ALCOHOL OR OTHER STRONG CLEANING AGENTS TO CLEAN AN ACRYLIC GLOX BOX.
PVC (polyvinyl chloride) can block a 254 Nm Ultraviolet Light. The effects of exposure to UV radiation may result in a color change to the product after long-term use.
Nitrogen needs to be introduced to the main chamber and airlock continuously to maintain low oxygen and RH% level (Initial flow rate can be 5 to 20 SCFH and 3 to 5 SCFH to maintain).
Connecting the outlet of the PCU to the airlocks inlets using a T-Connection (included), the airlocks will be purged continuously with nitrogen at the same time with the main chamber. The Second option is purging the airlock with a spare nitrogen line using a flow meter to control the continuous flow rate separately from the main chamber.
The cycle time depends on the level of RH% you want to maintain, ambient level & N2 flow. Our recommendation is 20 to 30 minutes, this is sufficient for many applications.
Our recommendation
The transfer chamber is used to minimize nitrogen loss and contamination inflow while parts are transferred in and out. An O2 monitor and RH meter can be used to check the environment levels.
The material used is Butadyl, an alternative to HYPALON, NEOPRENE or BUTYL. The gloves are a chemical resistant / Anti-static glove with an 8″ diameter cuff port. The gloves can be replaced with any standard 8” dry box gloves. Stainless Steel clamp included and it is compatible with all type gloves.
In our standard 1500 series desiccators, gas (e.g. Nitrogen) is introduced to the cabinet via a gas-in port on the back plenum chamber and from there distributed to each individual chamber through a perforation back. Gas is purged out to the room through a bleeding valve or gas-out port located in the lowest chamber.
If needed, we can make isolate each individual chamber but one set of gas ports is required for each chamber.
A vacuum pump is used to remove air and other gases inside a vacuum chamber. This creates a low-pressure environment within the chamber allowing researchers to conduct experiments inside an environment with low pressure.
a) Input pressure for a Purge Control Unit (PCU) is between 15 to 60 PSI
b) The recommended output pressure on the PCU or glove box input pressure is between 5 to 20 PSI that can be adjusted by a pressure regulator on the PCU.
c) The flow rate of a Type-A PCU is set between 2 to 5 SCFH to maintain a low RH%. In order for the initial flow rate to reach the setpoint from ambient RH%, the operator can temporarily increase the flow rate up to 20 SCFH to speed up the process.
d) The flow rate of a Type-B PCU is set between 0 to 5 SCFH. Zero SCFH is used if you don’t require a minimum continuous flow into the glove box. Continuous flow may cause RH% inside the glove box to drop to a lower level than the set point.
If an Automatic Purge Control unit is not equipped, N2 should be under continuous flow.
The cracking pressure for a pressure relives or bleeding valve is 1” WG (inches of water).
The pressure relief or bleeding valve can be replaced with a standard gas fitting with a 1/4″ NPT thread and connected to the gas-out port to your existing exhaust system, otherwise, it will exhaust to the room.
Nitrogen gas is not harmful since the atmosphere is made up of approximately 78% Nitrogen. But increasing the Nitrogen level will reduce the Oxygen percentage in the air. Proper ventilation in a room is recommended.
After 30% absorption, the cartridge will start changing its color.
Silica Gel cartridges can be regenerated or dried in a conventional oven or microwave oven.
Oven Instructions
Microwave Instructions
Safety Tips:
Yes, these cartridges can be reused and the self-life is up to 12 months. The process of drying a silica gel cartridge can be done in a microwave or oven.
There is no regular maintenance or calibration needed for a purge control unit. Replace only when experiencing failure with the unit.
For calibration of the sensor, there is an adjust offset screw inside the sensor that can be used.
There is also a “CAL” function on the controller. This function does not recalibrate the sensor but adds a positive or negative offset to the reading from the sensor.
Cleatech-branded products have a 90-day labor warranty and 12 months parts warranty. After the warranty period, you can reach out to our customer support team to help repair or replace the product at the lowest cost possible.
For additional information on our warranty policy, please give us a call at 888-216-8033 or email us at info@cleatech.com.
Please note, for distributed products and the products manufactured by others, the original manufacturer’s return policy and warranty will be followed.
ESD or Electrostatic Discharge is created when a sudden flow of electricity between two electrically charged objects come in contact with each other causing an electrical short. This is the results of an imbalance of electrons on the surface of a material. The spark produced through ESD is the major cause of device failure in the semiconductor industry.
Nitrogen is the standard inert gas used to force moisture out of a desiccator cabinet. Nitrogen is introduced into the upper section of a desiccator since pushing air out of the bottom of the cabinet. This is achieved because Nitrogen has a lower specific gravity than air.
