I bet it works great on those pesky fingerprints
Posted on 03/02/2007 5:45:10 PM PST by HangnJudge
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. (AP) - This is one cleaning that could pass anybody's white-glove test.
A high-tech dust rag developed by a research chemist at a nuclear weapons plant can pick up potentially deadly beryllium particles that are 20 times smaller than what can be seen with the naked eye. Its inventor, Ron Simandl, says it could be used to mop up industrial accidents or wipe down semiconductor "clean rooms."
And look out Swiffer dusters: The "Negligible-Residue Non-tacky Tack Cloth" could be bound for the consumer market, albeit with a catchier name.
Simandl, who is used to working in a secretive environment at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant, isn't saying much about the ingredients in his special cloth-coating formula. The patent-pending treatment, which could work on any rag, has been tested on cheesecloth for six months with great success, he said. Metal, ceramic, plastic, fibers, radiological contaminants all have been picked up.
"There is a good, but not necessarily obvious reason why they work," he said. "My cloths were thoroughly tested before I submitted the patent application."
Marilyn Giles, technology transfer director for Y-12's managing contractor, is shopping the treatment around.
"We will need a technical champion before we can find a business champion because it is kind of hard to comprehend that it can actually do what he says it can do," Giles said. "But it would not be a very expensive process to put in place for a company who already does this."
The Institute of Environmental Sciences and Technology, an industry group that is involved in setting clean room standards, sounded intrigued.
"The product is interesting, but there are a number of questions ... that many professionals would have," institute spokeswoman Heather Dvorak said in an e-mail.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.excite.com ...
I bet it works great on those pesky fingerprints
Wasn't that one of the legit uses of Polonium? IIRC, it charged the dust particles so they would be attracted to the cloth. Did the inventor mention anything about wearing a DEVO outfit while cleaning?
So, after billions spent on nuclear research all we get is a better dust rag?
Well, that and two fairly modern cities in Japan...
LOL! Right on!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.