Electrofusion Products - Frequently Asked Questions

Ultra High Vacuum Beryllium Window Assemblies

General Questions

1. Who do I contact to request a quote?

You can contact us directly or, if you are outside the US, you can contact an Electrofusion salesperson near you. Please see our Contact Information.

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2. How many years has Electrofusion been around?
Electrofusion was incorporated in 1966 and was purchased by Brush Wellman in 1990. Brush Wellman was incorporated in 1931.

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3. Is Brush Wellman - Electrofusion Products ISO 9001 certified?

We were originally certified to ISO 9001:2000 in March of 2002 by Bureau Veritas. Our most recent recertification, still with Bureau Veritas, was in April of 2008 and is valid until April of 2011. As of October, 2009, we are certified to the ISO 9001:2008 standard. We continue to have surveillance audits every 9 months. Our certificate number is US08000251. Click here for a copy of our ISO certificate.

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4. How do I clean beryllium?

In General

Clean beryllium by wiping it softly with methanol or isopropyl alcohol. If water is to be used, use only distilled, deionized water. The isopropyl alcohol needs to be pure, lab grade quality. At 100% purity it is less likely to harm the window assembly than at 75% purity. The contaminants in the isopropyl are the source of damage for the assembly. Isopropyl / rubbing alcohol that is available at the local grocery or drug store will not be sufficiently pure for this use - it must be source laboratory / scientific grade material.

Precautions with immersing assemblies for cleaning

Immersing the assembly in a bath of isopropyl alcohol will pose no hazard, as far as the chemical interactions go. However, care must be taken in using this method to prevent introducing hydraulic stresses on the beryllium window when putting the assembly in and taking the assembly out of the bath. Depending on the nature of the contaminants that are being cleaned from the vacuum side, there can be additional concerns. For example, if there are any particles or small bits of debris, it is important that the bath process not flush them into the region where the beryllium and rest of the assembly are joined at the edge of the aperture (particularly on thin windows). If the particles become lodged there or are not removed from this region, they will become points of stress concentration when the assembly is put under vacuum again and will likely cause window failure.

If there is a 'film' type contaminant on the window, simply immersing in isopropyl alcohol may not remove it entirely and some physical wiping may be required. Depending on the nature of what is being cleaned from the window, it may require multiple wiping and bathing steps to get the assembly to the desired level of cleanliness. If the contaminant is particularly stubborn, very light physical wiping with Acetone may help. It is recommended to follow the Acetone wiping with pure Isopropyl or Methanol as a final step to make sure no contaminates are left behind.

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5. Does Brush Wellman - Electrofusion Products recycle beryllium?

As a responsible manufacturer of beryllium products, we support our customers and their customers in "End of Life" handling of equipment. Our policy on recycling beryllium x-ray windows is as follows:

Brush Wellman - Electrofusion Products (EFP) is pleased to accept Be windows for recycling from any customer or end-user who does not wish to be responsible for disposing of them.
Because of the fact that most of the value of Be sheet and foil products is in the labor to make the material into its thin form, rather than in the material itself, EFP is not in a position to pay anything for the material. For example, recycled bulk Be is worth about $150 per kg for clean solids. Since EFP will need to remove the windows from the frames and clean them as needed, what little value remains for the foil is offset by labor to get it.
Provided that the customer pays for shipping, EFP will recycle beryllium windows at no charge. We provide this as a service. If a customer feels that he or she can earn money for recycling through a metals trader, we recommend that choosing that option. When sending material to EFP, we ask only that customers separate the Be window subassembly (i.e. Be window + frame) from the rest of the product (i.e. x-ray source tube or detector). We cannot accept complete x-ray source tubes in order to recycle windows.
If the material is coming in from outside the United States, it must be clearly stated on customs declarations that this material is U.S. origin goods being returned to its source for recycle and has no commercial value. The words "scrap," "waste," or "disposal" must not be used, as EFP is not an authorized waste disposal company.
While a customer does not need an RMA number to send us beryllium for recycling, we need notification in advance by fax or e-mail that the material is coming and what to expect.

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Ultra High Vacuum Beryllium Window Assemblies

1. What is a safe way to tighten a Conflat-style flange with a beryllium window in it?

First, insert all of the bolts and tighten them by hand.
Second, tighten opposite bolts (for example, at the 12 o’clock and 6 o’clock position) gently, turning each of the bolts by no more than one-eighth of a turn after first feeling resistance.
Now tighten the set of bolts closest to 90º from the first ones (for example, at the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock positions) in the same fashion, again turning each bolt by no more than one-eighth of a turn after first feeling resistance.
Then, tighten the next pair of bolts that are in between these bolts (for example, at the 1:30 and 7:30 position) in the same fashion.
After all of the bolts have been tightened this way, go back in the same order and tighten the bolts another quarter turn.
Keep going around the flange in this pattern, being gentle with each bolt, until the faces of the two Conflat flanges meet all the way around. Light should not be visible between the sides of the flange.

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General Beryllium Health and Safety

(if you don't see the answers you are looking for, check our Health and Safety page)

1. Does beryllium cause cancer?

No. Studies conducted on worker populations have found no excess cancer risk in facilities operated after the 1950s where inhalation exposures were typically 10 to 1000 times lower than that experienced in pre-1950 facilities. Most organizations have addressed this finding by stating that any association which may exist between beryllium and cancer is only at the extremely high levels of airborne beryllium particulate exposure which existed at facilities operating before the 1950s. For more information, download the complete datasheet here.

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2. Is beryllium flammable? If a beryllium containing speaker were in a house fire, would that cause problems?

As stated in the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), solid beryllium, which is the form of Truextent® brand Acoustic Beryllium, does not have a flash point and therefore will not ignite in air. Since the maximum temperature of a typical house fire is well below the 1,285°C (2,435°F) melting point of beryllium (click here to see the National Institute of Standards and Technology report which shows the maximum temperature reached is approximately 850°C), concerns about beryllium safety in the event of a house fire are unfounded. There is a much higher risk from the dangers associated with the variety of polymers contained within typical households and the toxic fumes emitted when they are ignited.

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3. Where can I get more Health and Safety Information?

More information can be found on our Health & Safety page by clicking the link in the top right corner of this website from any page or by clicking here.

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4. Is Beryllium restricted by the RoHS regulations?

No, beryllium is not restricted by RoHS regulations. For more information, see our page on Health and Safety.

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5. What do I need to know about REACH (Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of CHemicals) if I use beryllium?

For REACH information, see our corporate page on the European Union REACH regulation as it relates to Beryllium and Beryllium Alloys.

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6. Where can I get some practical advice on working safely with beryllium?

For information on working with beryllium, see our page on Health and Safety. If you would like to view an online, interactive guide, click here.

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Export Questions

1. Can I export beryllium from the United States?

In general, beryllium that is used as an x-ray window or an acoustic component can be exported without a license from the U.S. Department of Commerce, and most other applications and forms of beryllium can be exported after an export license (U.S. Department of Commerce or U.S. Department of State, depending upon the product, application or use) is obtained. There may be ITAR or other restrictions for specific products, applications, or end users, so please contact us for more information about your specific situation.

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2. Can Brush Wellman do my export paperwork?

We routinely handle export compliance paperwork when we send products to customers outside the United States. If we are selling the product to a customer in the U.S., however, we cannot do the paperwork for them to later export the product themselves.

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