Chapter Eight - Radiation Safety

Work Stations and Hutches:

CHESS has lead-shielded rooms (also called hutches, caves or stations) to keep any x-rays being used in experiments from posing danger to people on the outside.  Safety features such as dump buttons, search buttons, door interlocks, kirk key systems, and station enable keys ensure that no one is inside hutches or caves while x-rays are present.

Removing a station enable key makes it impossible to open the beam stops on that station.  Whenever the CHESS safety system is disabled or an operator or member of the CHESS Safety Committee finds the station being operated incorrectly, he or she has the right to disable the station.

Pressing a dump button temporarily cuts CHESS off from the beam by closing beam stops.  Dump buttons can be used in the rare case that someone is locked in an area that would expose him or her to x-rays from the beam.  Dump buttons are clearly marked and are located inside every hutch large enough to allow a person to be locked inside.

Last Update: 2006-09-14