To reduce a load of feeding and discarding and compression and decompression of a supercritical fluid when loading or discharging an article to be cleaned to or from a cleaning tank, and to shorten cleaning time.
This cleaning device extracts and removes a contaminant adhering to the article W to be cleaned by bringing the supercritical fluid (or subcritical fluid) into contact with the article W in the cleaning tank 1. An inlet 51 and an outlet 61 for the article W are independently provided in the cleaning tank 1. A chamber 53 only for the inlet 51 and a chamber 63 only for the outlet 61 which have a volume smaller than that of the cleaning tank 1 are provided outside the inlet 51 and the outlet 61. Gate valves 55, 56, 65 and 66 are provided respectively at both sides of a communication opening between each chamber 53 and 63 and the cleaning tank 1 and a communication opening between the outsides. The feeding and discarding lines 40, 43, 45 and 48 of the supercritical fluid are connected to each chamber 53 and 63.
HATAKEYAMA KO
ARIMA YUSUKE
NISHIMURA KENJI
Next Patent: CLEANING DEVICE