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[AMPS] Beryllium in 2C39's and 4CX250fg's?

To: <amps@contesting.com>
Subject: [AMPS] Beryllium in 2C39's and 4CX250fg's?
From: davek@medphys.ucl.ac.uk (Dave Kirkby)
Date: Fri, 02 Oct 1998 15:14:20 +0100
Ian Roberts wrote:

> I've been given 3 dozen of the 250's, and have a number of the 39's or
>
> variants.
>
> Vaguely readable on some of the EIMAC 250's are washed-out labels
> referring to a hazard. The Chinese versions (China Electronics, some
> new) don't take the trouble. Nothing is visible on the 39's, mostly
> EIMAC, and a few GE's.
>
> Apparently the "ceramic" (also described as "alumina" in SVETLANA'S
> literature on ceramic tubes) has a fair amount of beryllium oxide.
>
> So before I turf unwanted spares in the garbage, for delighted
> scroungers on the municipal rubbish dump to ingest, inhale or
> otherwise
> eat the crushed contents of blue bags, and before I breathe in heaps
> of
> the stuff trying to achieve water cooling and similar kinky
> technology,
> does anyone have some advice for me on handling these tubes. Assuming
> they do, in fact, contain beryllium, or am I on no-no (taboo)
> territory?
>
> Ian Roberts, ZS6BTE
>

I dont think either the 4CX250B or the 2C39A have BeO in them, so can be
disposed of easily. I think the hazard labels refer to the high-voltages
and the heat these things generate (ie they could burn you if touched
immediately after power off).

Tubes that probably do have BeO include the conduction cooled tubes,
such as 4CS250R. The bases used for the conduction cooled tubes and the
heat conduction blocks are also BeO.

An Eimac employeee told me the reason the conduction cooled tubes,
bases and heat conduction blocks are so expensive, is due to the
disposal costs of the waste during manufacture. I think this rather
indicates that the normal air cooled tubes dont contain BeO.

I have purchased a couple of bases for the conduction cooled Y799
(basically a conduction cooled 4CX250B). The bases are designed to
conducted heat from the grid and heater to the chassis, and so use BeO.
The data sheet says that Eimac (I assume through Richardson
Electroncics) will dispose of them for free. However,. I dont think you
need to worry for the standard air cooled devices.

dave kirkby G8WRB.





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