The Vacuum Principles and Applications Laboratory (VPAL) is an integrated and expandable vacuum teaching system that is intended primarily for technical college and undergraduate level use. This system can be used to provide a sound understanding of vacuum physics as well as to demonstrate practical applications of vacuum in industry.

The standard package comes with a manifold with inlet leak & isolation valves, Bourdon (dial) & wide-range Pirani gauges, a plastic chamber with electrical feedthroughs, a borosilicate glass chamber for low pressure and plasma exercises, 6 cfm 2-stage mechanical pump and full documentation. Optional accessory kits currently include Vernier brand data logging
hardware & software for data capture, a 50 sccm mass flow controller and a complete package of equipment for plasma and dc sputtering exercises. All critical components are industrial quality.

The precision wide range Pirani absolute scale transducer has two electrical outputs: a scaled analog voltage output and an RS232 interface. The analog output of the gauge may be monitored with a standard digital voltmeter or it may be interfaced to a PC with a data logger for graphical
display and data storage.

The system incorporates a gas inlet needle valve supplemented with precision orifices. These are used for flow exercises and enable the user to control the system pressure dynamically. The plastic base-plate incorporates three electrical feedthroughs and one tubing connector. These
feedthroughs may be used for powering devices placed within the chamber and for monitoring sample temperatures.

With the VPAL Basic System you can cover the following topics:

Triple point of water, sublimation
Adiabatic (evaporative) cooling
A variety of Boyle's Law exercises
Dynamic pressure control
Leak detection methods (pressure rate of rise, gas selective sensor)
Mass flow (standard condition volumetric flow and relationship to Ideal Gas and Avogadro's Laws)
Mass flow calculations based on constant volume/variable pressure and constant pressure/variable volume)
Flow through an orifice (sonic flow)
Outgassing & permeation
Freeze drying process
Specifications:

Base pressure (typical):
150mTorr (plastic chamber),
25 mTorr (glass chamber)

Gauges: 0-30 inHg atm
Referenced Bourdon gauge,
1 mTorr – 1000 Torr MKS
Micro Pirani guage

Valves: Foreline pinch valve
Plus needle gas inlet valve

Chamber connection fitting:
1.375 o-ring compression fitting
and KF40 flange

Complete basic system with pump, less supplemental accessories. Includes base manifold, MKS 925C-11MicroPirani vacuum gauge, glass chamber with feedthrough fitting and plastic safety shield, Plastic Nalgenebelljar with baseplate, isolation and inlet/vent (needle) valves, 20micron and 200 micron orifices, bubble flowmeter, glass thermometer, piezo buzzer, 6 cfm vacuum pump, and all hoses, clamps, and connectors.

Other available accessories include:

46005 6 CFM, two stage, Robinair vacuum pump with fittings.

46040 Crooke's Radiometer to demonstrate outgassing & thermal transpiration

46042 Thermal conductivity and mean free path - determine the diameter of an air molecule and make a vacuum gauge

46044 Hittorf Detour Tube to demonstrate obstructed and constricted glow discharges(requires 46010 Plasma Topics Kit)

46046 Hot wire vacuum evaporation kit for the deposition of metal films