Cleaning Genesis Solar Wind Collectors with Ultrapure Water: Residual Contaminant Particle Analysis

Abstract

Additional experience has been gained in removing contaminant particles from the surface of Genesis solar wind collectors fragments by using megasonically activated ultrapure water (UPW)[1]. The curatorial facility has cleaned six of the eight array collector material types to date: silicon (Si), sapphire (SAP), silicon-on-sapphire (SOS), diamond-like carbon-on-silicon (DOS), gold-on-sapphire (AuOS), and germanium (Ge). Here we make estimates of cleaning effectiveness using image analysis of particle size distributions and an SEM/EDS reconnaissance of particle chemistry on the surface of UPW-cleaned silicon fragments (Fig. 1). Other particle removal techniques are reported by [2] and initial assessment of molecular film removal is reported by [3]