Plans for an actual glove/dry box or 3

Still under construction!
I will be building one of these as well hopefully. Probably that final door version with the airlock

One major difference between this design and a commercial unit is I am not a design engineer and am designing this for my needs. Considerations for decontamination, ergonomics, static control, particle filtration and other factors have probably been missed.

This design is for shielded atmosphere and will accommodate sterile atmosphere work with minor modifications. The access door panel is the most complex piece, and most modifiable. I will give a couple examples of access points.

I want to discuss the plastics for a minute.
Acrylic is a better choice (imo) for the following reasons, it will resist yellowing over time from UV exposure, its stiffer than polycarbonate by thickness, and its what the commercial versions are made of. Polycarbonate will be easier to work with if your cutting it out yourself, and is less scratch resistant.

The construction is easy enough, but to do it right you will need a couple of tools and supplies including;
6 sheets 24"x24" of acrylic or polycarbonate. (the "less cut" option is fine)
Adhesive for your plastic sheets.
4 bar clamps longer than 24"
a drill
A pilot drill bit
A 3/16 bit (or so for the hardware screws)
a 1/4" bit for the stop valves
a 3/8" bit (or so for the power)
High quality silicone caulk.
2x Rings cut off of 8"diameter ABS pipe 1.5-2 inches long
A grommet for the power line
A replacement power plug for the one you remove.

If you are doing the cutting yourself rather than having the plastic shop make the cuts you will also need

5/16" drill bit
A jigsaw or scroll saw or better yet a cnc mill or laser cutting unit
More skill than I have

I'm planning on getting the major holes holes precut, and I will use the hardware as a guide to drill the mounts.

4 sheets are untouched and simply 24 x 24
1 sheet has 2 arm holes cut in it 8"diameter

Holes for arms 8" diameter

Entry door with holes for power and gas, as well as exhaust.

 Notice the gap in the door

The whole thing with the simplest door

an oversized airlock designed for practice

a complete door with airlock, entry door and expansion room for external atmosphere filtration

Airlocks require gas lines and exhaust lines, and if your really serious about it a vacuum pump.


If your not applying a vacuum to the chamber (which these plastic specifications would be destroyed by), the procedures I have read involve flooding the main box for an hour with shield gas before starting work.
An example of lab procedures for drybox inert atmosphere work can be found here.