Clean Modules has developed a mobile cleanroom in a container for use in the oceans around Antarctica.
The container cleanroom was designed and built for the Chemical Oceanography Department at the Leibniz Institut fur Meereswissenschaften (IFM-Geomar) in Kiel, Germany, who are researching the role of trace metals on primary productivity in the ocean.
The cleanroom was used for the first time during EIFEX (European iron fertilisation experiment), a mesoscale experiment in which algae growth in the iron-limited Southern Ocean was promoted by adding iron oxide (ferrous sulphate) to a 50km2 study site.
This approach has been suggested as a possible method to remove anthropogenic CO2 from the atmosphere and thus mitigate the effects of global warming.
The container accommodates two technicians and consists of an ISO Class 7 cleanroom with an ISO Class 5 laminar airflow (LAF) bench, complete with anchor points to secure the contents, a change area and plant room with an un-interrupted power supply (UPS).
The room has a built in seawater sampling system and meets low trace element standards to enable sensitive scientific monitoring.
To cope with the extreme ocean environments, serious thought was given to risk of seawater penetration and corrosion, not to mention the rough conditions on board the research vessel Polarstern.
The module is certified as meeting the requirements of the American Bureau of Shipping offshore accommodation modules.
The container cleanroom went on its first mission in early 2004 and according to Dr Peter Croot, it proved to be excellent at maintaining cleanroom conditions despite the environment encountered outside.
