Exhausting Gasses Produced by the Cleaning Process

In many industrial cleaning processes it is necessary to exhaust emissions that unavoidably result from the cleaning process.  The reasons for exhaust can take on a large range – Remove heat that would otherwise raise the temperature in the cleaning area Remove humidity that would otherwise raise the humidity in the cleaning area Remove toxic fumes that might otherwise be dangerous …

Chemical Concentration – Economic and Process Considerations (cont.)

My previous blog addressed the chemical cost of using too much (or perhaps too little) “soap” in a cleaning process based on chemical cost.  Today we look at process issues. You might be saying, “What the heck?  So I use too much chemical.  Soap is cheap and I look at it as “insurance”.”  Well, that “insurance” …

Other Oil Removal Options

In some cases, previously described oil removal technologies based on the gravity separation of oil from the cleaning solution are unjustifiably cumbersome and expensive.  Fortunately, smaller scale solutions are available for use in such applications. Oil Skimmers – Oil skimmers utilize a material which preferentially attracts oil (hydrophobic) to skim floating oil from a surface …

Chemistry – Oil Splitting and Oil Emulsification – Part 1

As I have said before on this blog, I am not a chemist.  Whatever I say about chemistry on the blog is expressed in layman’s terms and is based on practical experience and not on any deep understanding I have of the properties of chemicals. The usefulness of any information provided here applies only to …

Lubricants and Coolants – “Vanishing” Oils?

“Vanishing Oils” are often considered as an alternative to more conventional lubricants in light duty stamping and forming operations.  The conception is that these formulations actually “vanish” eliminating the need for cleaning once there is no longer a need for lubrication.  True, depending on circumstances, they may reduce or eliminate the need for cleaning but in fact, …

Coolants and Lubricants – Ramifications on Cleaning

Lubricants and coolants are two of the most common contaminants requiring removal in industrial cleaning.  Understanding their basic nature and how they work may help lead to the solution of many cleaning problems Lubricants help prevent friction between two surfaces moving relative to one another by, in effect, providing a barrier between the two surfaces …

Rinsing – Better Rinsing Using Less Water

It is no secret that good cleaning followed by poor rinsing can be worse than not rinsing (or cleaning) at all.  A single-use rinse using a fresh water spray or a high flow rate or single use immersion rinse are often thought to provide the ultimate rinse.  These options, however, are often extremely expensive because they consume …

Cleaning – Solvents – So What’s Different Now?

Previous blogs discussed the demise of solvents after the Montreal Protocol.  Today, in the US at least, solvents are coming back prompting the reader to ask, “What Has Changed.”  First of all, there was never any real argument that solvents did, and still do, a good job of cleaning in many, many applications!  Are there aqueous and other alternatives …

Neutral Ground

The use of some kind of chemistry is an important and unavoidable part of most industrial cleaning processes.  Chemistries can remain effective for as little as a few hours or as long as a year or more depending on the chemistry and how it is used.  In the end, however, cleaning chemistry must be disposed …