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The purpose of a diode is to allow the flow of electrical current in only one direction. The ability to control current flow is very useful in electronics applications. Diodes have been around in one form or another for a long time. In the days of vacuum tubes, a “diode” was a tube with a … Continued
Most cleaning today is based on aqueous (water based) technology. Wash, rinse and dry cleaning has become the norm. But, for those of you who are new to the cleaning industry and don’t know, Chlorinated and Fluorinated solvents were the cleaning “benchmark” for many years. Virtually every manufacturing facility cleaned something using a vapor degreaser with … Continued
The lowly resistor is probably the electronic component that is most familiar to most of us. Its one and only purpose is to limit the number of electrons that flow through a circuit. The “poorly conductive material” used in the vast majority of resistors is a mixture of carbon with various other “stuff” to hold … Continued
In a previous blog, we talked about the effect that different waveforms have on RMS vs. Peak voltage. Now we’re going to look at the ramifications of that when it comes to power consumption. For purposes of discussion, we are going to use an old-fashioned light bulb with a filament – something that’s easier for most … Continued
Over the years I have made tens if not hundreds of efforts to clarify the meaning of the term “power” as it applies to the capabilities of ultrasonic cleaning systems. Despite these efforts, a functional means of rating the capability of ultrasonic cleaning systems is still undefined. There are several conventions and declarations. But in … Continued
The blog A Little About RMS introduced the concept RMS (Root Mean Squared) as a way of expressing the equivalent effect of alternating current vs. direct current electricity in the power consumed by a resistive load. Now would be an excellent time to read that one again before going ahead with this one. As part … Continued
With the availability of ultrasonic cleaning equipment operating at frequencies from 20kHz up to over 250kHz and the capability to use more than one frequency in a single piece of ultrasonic cleaning equipment, users inevitably and rightly question the optimum frequency or frequencies for their cleaning applications. The popular and most touted notion is that … Continued
Successful ultrasonic cleaning processes utilize a combination of mechanical action provided by the formation and implosion of cavitation bubbles and chemistry that dissolves and/or promotes the wetting and transfer of mechanical energy to dislodge the contaminants to be removed. The interactions and effects of chemistry on the ultrasonic process obviously exist but are not well … Continued
If you work around ultrasonic cleaning tanks you have probably heard a tank “squeal.” If you’ve never heard this, (1) consider yourself lucky and (2) be aware that a “squeal” is not the normal hissing sound associated with an operating ultrasonic tank but, rather, an extremely high amplitude sound at an audible frequency that can … Continued
The physical laws of liquids are a little complex yet a general understanding of them is important to understanding the mechanics of cleaning chemistry in the removal of both soluble and not-so-soluble contaminants from parts. The general concept was discussed in the blog Chemistry – Solvent Characteristics. This blog will take things a bit further. Question … Continued
