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Registered Member #1667
Joined: Sat Aug 30 2008, 09:57PM
Location:
Posts: 374
Yesterday a colleague asked me to diagnose an IK5452 HeCd laser that failed in his lab. Apparently, the cathode filament(? description not given in the manual) was open circuit. I also noticed a large pad of fine white insulation wool. The laser head was produced in 1989 and has a large fan on top of it that continuously sucks out air. I didn't remove the insulation, just touched it once to feel the texture. I also didn't remove a sample for testing with a polarized light microscope.
Question: did they use asbestos wool in forced air cooled lasers at some point of time? Would be pretty annoying to have the laser spew asbestos dust in an optics lab.
Registered Member #543
Joined: Tue Feb 20 2007, 04:26PM
Location: UK
Posts: 4992
In 1989, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced that it would "phase out" and ban nearly all products containing asbestos, (54 Fed. Reg. 29,460 (1989)) a law commonly known as the "Asbestos Ban and Phaseout Rule of 1989."
Not too much "phasing out" had happened by 1991, when the law was overturned by the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals following lobbying by the American asbestos industry.
So there is every possibility that a laser head manufactured in 1989 - especially as it is a non-consumer product - may contain carcinogenic asbestos.
Registered Member #1667
Joined: Sat Aug 30 2008, 09:57PM
Location:
Posts: 374
One cannot be careful enough :( So the laser is definitely a pre-ban product. I've contacted Kimmon and demanded a hazmat declaration for the laser head. Futhermore, we will have a look a the dust lying around in the lab.
Registered Member #543
Joined: Tue Feb 20 2007, 04:26PM
Location: UK
Posts: 4992
The insulation medium could perhaps be rockwool - a fibre made from fused minerals or metal oxides - but I think you should treat it as though it were asbestos until examination proves otherwise.
Registered Member #3215
Joined: Sun Sept 19 2010, 08:42PM
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Posts: 780
they commonly used asbestos in this kind of lasers
Kimmon lasers might have a third electrode for a spare filament... try and find one which is located in the same row... if it reads continuity between the middle electrode and the other one, it would be the filament
PS: this asbestos should be resin-mixed so there should be no risk.. I say SHOULD as I don't know the state of the laser
Registered Member #1667
Joined: Sat Aug 30 2008, 09:57PM
Location:
Posts: 374
a little update:
the laser head was actually made in 1999 (although we have a manual that says something about a HeCd laser from 1989 which might explain the confusion), I checked back on that.
I called a technician from Soliton and he said no asbestos was used in this type of laser. Maybe quartz wool. Lucky me
No luck with the spare filament. There are three ampules connected to the HR (cathode) side of the tube: a helium reservoir with a Quartz membrane and heater, the cathode (large ampule) and a smaller filament with ~15 Ohm resistance which I suspect is part of a pressure gauge. Maybe there is something hidden in the insulation, I haven't dug any deeper yet. It would have to be big and have fat cables connected to it.
Registered Member #3215
Joined: Sun Sept 19 2010, 08:42PM
Location:
Posts: 780
please post some pictures of the tube
I have Liconix tubes which are different, but I could be of help
I dont recall well but it may be omnichrome designs which had spare filaments
if you try to power the lasre, disconnect the Helium heater and replace it temporarily by an equivalent power resistor of 10 to 20 watts, to avoid releasing Helium and preventing to lase
normally the three wires next to the cathode are cadmium pressure sensors which should be two thermistors (but I could be mistaking)
are you sure it has a filament and it is not in reality the cadmium reservoir heater?
you can always read a bit on sam's laser FAQ about HeCad designs, but they have no reference about Kimmon designs, but they seem to be closer to liconix than omnichrome
maybe it would be nice to take some shots and note all your progress to contribute to the FAQ
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Asbestos in Kimmon HeCd laser?
