Surface cleaning with argon
AssigneeSumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd.
InventorsTadamoto Tamai, Yoichiro Ikeya
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Argon gas and nitrogen gas are mixed together and cooled by a cooler to a liquefying temperature of argon gas specific to its pressure, to form argon fine droplets in the mixed gas. The gas is then jetted out of nozzles and blown into a vacuum chamber to adiabatically lower the temperature further and change fine droplets to solid fine particles which are used to clean the surface of an object.
Claims26
In a surface cleaning method wherein argon is sprayed through a nozzle device onto the surface of an object to be cleaned, the improvement comprising:
- an argon fine droplets forming step for forming argon liquid droplets upstream of the nozzle device comprising a cooling step to cool a gas containing an argon gas to the liquefying temperature of argon gas specific to the pressure of said argon gas, or lower, to form a fluid comprising said argon fine droplets and delivering said fluid containing the argon droplets into the nozzle device;
- an argon fine particles forming step comprising jetting out the fluid containing argon liquid droplets from the nozzle device to a depressurized atmosphere and adiabatically expanding said fluid from the nozzle device in the depressurized atmosphere to solidify at least part of said argon liquid droplets into argon fine particles;
- and
- a blowing step of blowing said fluid containing said argon fine particles to the surface of the object to be cleaned.
In a surface cleaning method, wherein argon is sprayed through a nozzle device onto the surface of an object to be cleaned, the improvement comprising:
- an argon fine droplets forming step comprising heating a stream of liquid argon to form a fluid comprising a stream of argon gas containing argon liquid droplets;
- an argon fine particles forming step comprising jetting out the fluid of argon gas containing argon liquid droplets from the nozzle device to a depressurized atmosphere and adiabatically expanding said fluid from the nozzle device in the depressurized atmosphere to solidify at least part of said argon liquid droplets into argon fine particles;
- and
- a blowing step of blowing said fluid containing said argon fine particles to the surface of the object to be cleaned.
In a surface cleaning method, wherein argon is sprayed through a nozzle device onto the surface of an object to be cleaned, the improvement comprising:
- an argon fine droplets forming step comprising mixing a stream of liquid argon with gas to form a fluid comprising a stream of gas containing argon liquid droplets;
- an argon fine particles forming step comprising jetting out the fluid of gas containing argon liquid droplets from the nozzle device to depressurized atmosphere and adiabatically expanding said fluid from the nozzle device in the depressurized atmosphere to solidify at least part of said argon liquid droplets into argon fine particles;
- and
- a blowing step of blowing said fluid containing said argon fine particles to the surface of the object to be cleaned.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.