Glovebox

A glovebox (or glove box) is a sealed container that is designed to allow one to manipulate objects where a separate atmosphere is desired. Built into the sides of the glovebox are gloves arranged in such a way that the user can place their hands into the gloves and perform tasks inside the box without breaking containment. Part or all of the box is usually transparent to allow the user to see what is being manipulated. Two types of gloveboxes exist. The first allows a person to work with hazardous substances, such as radioactive materials or infectious disease agents, and the second allows manipulation of substances that must be contained within a very high purity inert atmosphere, such as argon or nitrogen. It is also possible to use a glovebox for manipulation of items in a vacuum chamber.The gas in a glovebox is pumped through a series of treatment devices which remove solvents, water and oxygen from the gas. Heated copper metal (or some other finely divided metal) is commonly used to remove oxygen, this oxygen removing column is normally regenerated by passing a hydrogen/nitrogen mixture through it while it is heated: the water formed is passed out of the box with the excess hydrogen and nitrogen. It is common to use molecular sieves to remove water by absorbing it in the molecular sieves' pores. Such a box is often used by organometallic chemists to transfer dry solids from one container to another container.At the now-deactivated Rocky Flats Plant, which manufactured plutonium triggers, also called 'pits', production facilities consisted of linked stainless steel gloveboxes up to 64 feet, or 20 meters, in length, which contained the equipment which forged and machined the trigger parts. The gloves were lead-lined. Other materials used in the gloveboxes included acrylic viewing windows and Benelex shielding composed of wood fiber and plastic which shielded against neutron radiation. Manipulation of the lead-lined gloves was onerous work.Flexible plastic glovebox (wherein changes in the gas atmosphere are visible via the wall expansion)Metal glovebox for handling dangerous substances in vacuum, with extra protection against explosions or implosionsSergei Krikalev working with a portable glovebox at the International Space StationMultiple-port glovebox allowing access by several operators from different sidesA glovebox-like shield built around an experimental setupLarge scale glovebox in the nuclear industryA scientist in UCL Chemical Engineering uses a glovebox to manipulate a sampleAn ordinary glovebox, showing the two gloves for manipulation, with airlock on the rightGlovebox with microscope and airlock