EP1061863A1

EP1061863A1 - Method and device for recycling and decontaminating bag type objects such as disposable gloves for white rooms

Info

Publication number: EP1061863A1
Application number: EP99907687A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Patrick Hampe; Jean-François FRIN
Original assignee: D.P.S.
Current assignee: D.P.S.
Priority date: 1998-03-13
Filing date: 1999-03-11
Publication date: 2000-12-27
Also published as: MC2471A1; JP2002506713A; KR20010041659A; YU56100A; IL138161A0; AU2733599A; BR9908745A; SI20410A; CN1292667A; HUP0102346A3; EA200000932A1; RO119987B1; WO1999047063A1; AU757942B2; ID27659A; CA2322705A1; HUP0102346A2; PL342880A1; TW458813B

Abstract

The invention concerns a cleaner (3) arranged upstream of a sorting station (1), having an outlet (8) open inside a closed chamber (9) whereof the air is conditioned and wherein the bag type objects are displaced towards a dryer (10). The conditioning station (13), downstream of the dryer is also located in the closed chamber, thereby limiting the particular contamination generated by the ambient air. The invention is useful for treating disposable gloves for white rooms.

Description

Method and device for recycling and decontaminating bags such as disposable gloves for clean rooms.

The present invention relates generally to the decontamination of bags made of natural material (latex) or of plastic materials such as polyethylene or polypropylene or non-porous or microporous polymers, usually disposable after use, and used more specifically in atmospheres with atmospheres mastered.

More specifically, the invention relates to a method and a device for recycling and decontaminating these disposable bags for clean rooms.

It can therefore be either plastic bags or gloves made of natural or synthetic latex, vinyl or any other polymer. Also included are all pocket-shaped items with very little or no water porosity.

In practice, only articles which are porous to water are therefore excluded, such as textile articles and any other article which can commonly be washed and dried effectively in washing machines and domestic or industrial driers.

Drying non-porous bags is difficult to achieve because the water, which has been introduced inside the bags during washing, is very poorly removed. Indeed, predominant factors prevent drying, in particular the surface tensions between the two internal thin layers which "trap" water and water vapor which cannot pass through the pocket due to the non-porosity of the materials considered.

This is the case for the gloves currently used in the clean room and which are thrown away every time you leave the room, i.e. approximately every two hours.

The method according to the invention makes it possible to recycle the gloves several times and they can therefore be reused as new and not downgraded gloves for secondary uses, thereby reducing their average price and waste.

It will be noted that the method and the device according to the invention relates to products intended more particularly for areas with a controlled atmosphere and as such, the characteristics of the decontamination bath as well as the detergents used are of great importance. Indeed, certain decontamination liquids can cause degradation of the material and the detergents can be the cause of residual pollution on the articles, ^' incompatible with their use on processes in controlled atmosphere zones. To date, decontamination is carried out in industrial machines with deionized and filtered water as well as a washing agent containing nonionic, cationic or anionic surfactants. The washing parameters such as time, temperature, spin speed and number of cycles are variable, as are the volumes of water and detergents used.

In addition, to avoid the introduction of water inside the pockets, which subsequently poses drying problems, they are tied up in bundles to make them airtight.

Drying is carried out in a conventional industrial dryer. The factors determining the drying time are only the temperature and the volume of material loaded in the drum.

These treatments are directly derived from the decontamination of textiles intended for areas with a controlled atmosphere and it is easy to imagine that they only allow decontamination of the external face of the pockets. However, for gloves or pockets already used in areas with a controlled atmosphere, washing on one side is not enough, since on one of the two sides it is necessary to eliminate the operator's sweat, and on the other the soiling due to the intervention, because the glove must be returned to its original configuration, both physical and particulate, and bacteriological.

Intervention avoids these disadvantages by proposing a method and a device by which it is possible to wash a pocket or a glove on both sides, internal and external, and thus obtain a recycled and / or decontaminated product, at a lower cost than this same new product, which allows at the same time limiting industrial discharges of the materials concerned.

A first object of the invention therefore consists in a process for recycling and decontaminating pockets such as disposable gloves for clean rooms, a process which consists

- to ensure the sorting of the marked pockets in an indelible way, as well as their counting and the implementation of a computer monitoring,

- to wash and decontaminate the bags using washing and rinsing water, as well as with equipment, which is treated to be non-polluting, to be transferred inside a closed enclosure, and conditioned the washed bags to a drying unit equipped with devices limiting product contamination, to transfer the dried bags to a packaging station located inside the closed enclosure, where they are introduced into sachets,

- and to transport the conditioned bags out of the closed enclosure.

Another main object of the invention relates to a device for recycling and decontaminating pockets such as disposable gloves for clean rooms, for implementing the method, device according to which a washer disposed downstream of a sorting, has an open exit door inside a closed enclosure whose air is conditioned and in which the bags are moved in the direction of a dryer, being also placed in the closed enclosure. Other particular characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge from the description which follows of an embodiment in which one makes reference to the accompanying drawing which is a schematic representation of the recycling and decontamination device according to the invention.

Figure 1 schematically shows a device for recycling and decontaminating gloves.

In a sorting station 1, the gloves marked with an indelible mark with water and solvents are collected. The gloves are returned to the place and sorted manually or automatically by size for those considered to have no permanent stains or cuts or tears. Those considered non-recyclable are discarded. Thanks to the implementation of computer monitoring of these brands, we count the number of items by size, the number of items discarded and the number of recycling items sorted and considered good.

IT monitoring also makes it possible to know user customers and changes in size used in real time, allowing manufacturers to adjust their production campaigns according to actual consumption. Also, it allows management of the documents of the sales chain, as well as the automatic readjustment by customer of new items to meet their industrial needs, as well as control in the module, fixed or mobile, of all parameters necessary and essential for the proper functioning of the module by allowing all operations to be stopped when one of the parameters no longer corresponds to the specifications allowing decontamination that meets the industrial needs of destination of recycled products. At the outlet of the sorting station 1, the gloves 2 are directed (discontinuous arrow) to a washer 3 inside which they are introduced by a door 4. The washer arranged downstream of the sorting station is supplied by a 5 production of ultrapure water. This water is obtained by filtration over activated carbon at least 5 microns. The washing water is added with a washing agent with at least one nonionic or cationic surfactant of the quaternary ammonium type or a mixture of these surfactants. At least one disinfectant having bactericidal, virucidal, fungicidal and oxidizing properties is also added. It is deionized or osmotic. The rinse water introduced into the washer is preferably filtered to at least one micron. Decontamination water is deionized and filtered to at least 0.45 micron.

The washer 3 is equipped with a non-return valve 6 on the waste water discharge valve 7, as well as at least one cartridge, not shown, of filtration at least one micron located on the vents of the drum of the machine. All the elements intended for the circulation of fluids are made of non-polluting material, that is to say which allows only a minimum release of particles or metal ions in the water due to the different parts in contact with 1 water.

The washer has an open exit door 8 inside a closed enclosure 9 which thus limits the particulate contamination generated by the ambient air.

The gloves placed in the washer undergo at least one washing, at least one rinsing, at least one decontamination and at least one spin. After collecting the gloves through the door 8, they are moved into the enclosure 9 as shown by the arrow continues towards a dryer 10 whose access door 11 is inside the enclosure.

In the dryer 10 is placed a hermetic device allowing mechanical mixing of the products. There is also a circulation of clean hot air, filtered to at least 1 μm, coming from a power source 12, with a vacuum of at least 50 mbar. Thus is made possible the drying of pockets of zero or very low porosity in a time which keeps the products obtained competitive. An additional aerial ionization device is also provided allowing, according to the expressed industrial needs, to reduce the residual particulate contamination present on the pockets or the gloves and in particular to significantly reduce the particles of dimensions lower than 1 μm or else to potentially modify the electrostatic charge of the pockets or gloves.

After this drying operation, the gloves are directed (discontinuous arrow), still in the closed enclosure 9, to a conditioning station 13 internal to said enclosure, downstream of the dryer 10. The pockets and gloves are introduced therein into sachets or blisters, for example made of polyethylene or polypropylene, which are particularly clean and produced in single or double packaging with leaktight seal and partial vacuum. Once conditioned, the agents are sent out of the closed enclosure 9.

Inside this enclosure where washing, drying and conditioning operations and transfers between stations are carried out, and where there are the materials and personnel necessary for the performance of various tasks and manual operations, the air is conditioned and controlled with a supply of clean fresh air with an hourly renewal rate at least equal to 10. This environment, commonly known as "clean room" is necessary to ensure the particulate cleanliness essential to the products treated by the device. Therefore, the operators in charge of these operations, wear at least gloves, a cap and a combination of characteristics similar to those used in clean rooms according to the rules in force. If certain operations are carried out by automatic systems, these would also be adapted so as not to be polluting.

The process which is the subject of the invention therefore provides a technical and industrially competitive solution for the recycling of pockets or gloves of zero or low porosity. It allows, in fact, compared to the processes used to date, to effectively wash both sides of the products concerned thanks in particular to the specific drying which allows the evaporation of the liquid phase present inside the pockets or gloves while reducing the price by recycling cost of the product compared to a new product.

The process also reduces waste in landfill or incinerator of the products concerned, by allowing their recycling and therefore their reuse, at a low cost price, something which is currently carried out industrially for materials of high porosity, of textile type, but very little and unprofitable for the products concerned by said process.

Claims

1.- A method of recycling and decontaminating pockets such as disposable gloves for clean rooms, characterized in that it consists in - ensuring the sorting of the marked pockets indelibly, as well as their counting and the implementation of a follow-up computer science,

- to wash and decontaminate the bags using washing and rinsing water, as well as with equipment, which is treated to be non-polluting, to be transferred inside a closed enclosure, and conditioned the washed bags to a drying unit equipped with devices limiting product contamination, - to transfer the dried bags to a packaging station located inside the closed enclosure, or they are introduced into sachets,

- and to transport the conditioned bags out of the closed enclosure.

2.- A method of recycling and decontamination according to claim 1 characterized in that the bags are returned to the place and sorted by size after their individual and indelible marking with water and solvents.

3. A method of recycling and decontamination according to claim 1 characterized in that the washing water is added with a washing agent with at least one nonionic or cationic surfactant, or a mixture of these surfactants, and at least one disinfectant having bactericidal, virucidal, fungicidal and oxidizing properties.

4.- A method of recycling and decontamination according to claims 1 and 3 characterized in that the bags undergo at least one washing, at least one rinsing, at least one decontamination, and at least one spin.

5. A method of recycling and decontamination according to claim 1 characterized in that in the drying unit is provided a circulation of hot air filtered at least 1 μm and a vacuum of at least 50 mbar.

6.- A recycling and decontamination process according to claims 1 and 5 characterized in that the particulate contamination of the bags is reduced by potentially modifying their electrostatic charge.

7. A method of recycling and decontamination according to claim 1 characterized in that the bags are introduced into sachets made in single or double packaging with sealed seal and placed under partial vacuum.

8.- Device for recycling and decontaminating bags such as disposable gloves for clean rooms, for implementing the method according to claims 1 to 7 characterized in that a washer (3) disposed downstream of a sorting (1), has an exit door (8) open inside a closed enclosure (9) whose air is conditioned and in which the bags (2) are moved in the direction of a dryer (10 ), and in that a conditioning station (13), downstream of the dryer is also placed in the closed enclosure.

9.- Recycling and decontamination device according to claim (8) characterized in that the washer (3) is equipped with a non-return valve (6) on the valve (7) for evacuating waste water as well as at least one filtration cartridge at least one micron located on the vents of the machine drum.

10.- Recycling and decontamination device according to claim 9 characterized in that the circulation of clean hot air in the dryer (10) comes from a power source (12) external to the closed enclosure (9) .