Decontamination equipment

The RST decontamination unit is used for decontaminating parts with radioactivity from decommissioned power plants or nuclear-powered submarines, which results in dramatically reduced volumes of waste to be disposed of and enables many of the valuable materials to be recovered.

Decontamination is effected with high-pressure water jets operating at 2,500 bar (36,000 psi) and 20 l/min.

The operative puts on the protective safety suit and respiratory apparatus, and takes it off later, in the air lock beside the de-contamination chamber. The integrated shower cubicle allows the protective clothing to be cleaned. The workpieces in the chamber are decontaminated using the hand-held water-jet lance.

The parts are loaded into the chamber via a fully enclosed, rail-mounted transport carriage. The hydraulic height-adjustable swivelling platform and the 2-tonne crane ensure the parts to be cleaned are correctly positioned and enable ergonomic working.

The air extractor has been designed to achieve an air change rate per hour (ACH) of 50 to ensure, on the one hand, the operative has the clearest possible view of the workpiece during the cleaning process and, on the other, to generate permanent underpressure in the chamber, which prevents contamination of the area outside the decontamination unit. The air from the chamber is extracted, dehumidified and precleaned in a wet scrubber, treated in a fine-dust and HEPA filter and finally passed to the caisson, which, in turn, is supplied with fresh air from the superordinate ventilation system.

The entire process is monitored fully automatically. The plant is controlled via the intuitive touch panel.

As a rule, RST decontamination units are supplied with a fully automated water treatment unit. All the process water including the water extracted from the air in the chamber is cleaned by passing it through an array of filters and returned to the recirculating system.