Airlock system for transfer passage.

摘要

In an airlock system, through which drums (1) containing radioactive material are transferred into a containment area (3), a passage (4) has an intermediate region (11), of reduced cross section relative to the inlet and outlet ends of the passage. The passage has a convergent inlet region (10) and a divergent outlet region (12) leading, respectively, to and from the intermediate region. The passage functions in the manner of a venturi so that an airstream is caused to flow along the passage towards the containment so as to inhibit the escape of atmosphere therefrom. A roller conveyor (20) transfers the items through the airlock system and a detector (19) monitors the atmosphere in the passage.