Abstract: A smoke detector that comprises three different power sources. First one is the 110/220 volt AC house current, through a step down transformer or that can be hard wired into the home or factory. Second one is a moveable 9 volts rechargeable backup battery. Third one is a solar cell array with a plastic lens that provides up to 9 volts of current through a trickle charger/voltage regulator. The trickle charger also used to recharge the backup battery. With the trickle charger, the solar cell array can cause the smoke detector to alarm with only enough ambient light. The instant invention of the smoke detector unit overcomes the limits of the now market available smoke detectors, by being adjustable, moveable providing more current via the solar cell array to provide a complete recharge to the backup battery. Any voltage lower than 9 volts will lower the charge of the 9 volt rechargeable battery to the current 8 volts to 8 volts and so on up to 9 volts.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for the initiation of blasting. The method comprises the steps of initiating a detonation in an initial shock robe and causing the detonation to propagate along the interior of the shock robe. The detonation in the initial shock tube initiates a detonation in a high explosive charge in a connection device whereby the shock tube is connected to a plurality of further shock tubes. The detonation of the high explosive charge acts to transfer the detonation from the initial shock tube to the further shock tubes to initiate detonations therein. The transfer of the detonations from the initial shock tube to the further shock tubes is effected in a direction which is radial relative to the initial shock tube and radial relative to the further shock tube. The invention also provides a system for the initiation of blasting.

Abstract: The invention relates to a liquid scintillation spectrometry process and apparatus permitting the analysis of samples having a fluorescence efficiency quenching comprising chromatic quenching and chemical quenching. According to the invention, an external standard ionizing radiation source is used which is associated with a collimating means permitting the irradiation of the sample to be restricted to a small area. According to a first variant, two separate measurements are carried out on fluorescence radiations having different optical paths. These two measurements make it possible to determine a coefficient which represents the ratio between the chromatic quenching and the chemical quenching. In a second variant, the irradiation area is selected in such a way that the overall quenching is no longer dependent on this ratio.

Abstract: The invention relates to a liquid scintillation spectrometry process and apparatus permitting the analysis of samples having a quenching of the fluorescent efficiency resulting both from a color quenching and a chemical quenching. The invention makes it possible to measure a parameter B which gives the respective contributions of the two quenching types. According to the invention, parameter B is obtained in the following manner. A scintillation radiation produced by a standard fluorescent source placed in the vicinity of the sample to be measured is passed through the latter. This source comprises, for example, a solid scintillator exposed to an alpha or beta radiation source. The scintillation emitted by the standard source supplies an amplitude spectrum which is measured. One of the significant characteristics of this spectrum is determined, for example, the ratio of the counting rates in two different channels. This ratio gives parameter B.