I first talked about drying a long time ago in the blog called “Don’t Forget Drying.” In that blog, I stressed the importance of drying as a part of the cleaning process. In some cases, changes in the cleaning process can affect drying but, for now, let’s just concentrate on drying. Drying simply means removing liquid …
Preceding blogs have discussed acidic and caustic based cleaning chemistry. There are also chemistries, however, which are neither acidic or caustic but, rather, rely on other more mechanical than chemical mechanisms to affect cleaning. In a capsule, these mechanisms are wetting and emulsification. The reader should recognize that ingredients that promote these removal mechanisms are frequently …
Acidic cleaning chemistries were discussed in a preceding blog. Now let’s talk about the second of the three classifications of chemistry we defined – caustics. Caustics are materials that are basic as opposed to acidic in nature. The use of caustics for cleaning, especially for removing oils and greases, can be traced to the ancients. …
Water is often referred to as the “universal solvent.” Yet, as we all know, its hard to get grime off of your hands clean without using some soap! Water, however, is an attractive “solvent” as it is plentiful, relatively cheap and safe. The problem is that water just isn’t good at getting things clean all by …
Dimensions of orifices and typical contaminant scenarios were discussed in preceding blogs. Today, let’s consider the role of ultrasonics in removing contaminants from orifices. First, we’ll consider the “classic” orifice consisting of a passageway through a solid. Then we’ll talk about some special cases which can have an impact on the ability of ultrasonics and …
The preceding post defined two dimensions of concern when considering cleaning orifices. Before moving on, let’s now consider how the various types of contamination that might be found in an orifice and how each affects the cleaning task. Liquids – Liquids are common contaminants in orifices. Liquid contamination can result from manufacturing operations but also …
A few days ago, one of our customers asked one of our sales people what would seem like a very simple question. The question, in paraphrase, was – – “Do you know the relationship between ultrasonic frequency and the ability of ultrasonics to clean within a certain sized orifice.” Being a bit rushed when I received …
As a leading ultrasonic manufacturer, we are often asked to manufacture large, industrial ultrasonic cleaning systems producing a particular ultrasonic power density based on laboratory trials. In fact, it may not be appropriate to base the watts per gallon requirement for a large industrial application on those found effective on a laboratory scale. A paper at the following …
Solvents are a bit difficult to understand for a number of reasons. Even for someone who has worked with solvents as much as I have, the permutations of solvents, their combinations and their capabilities are bewildering. But, let’s start with the simple stuff. A solvent dissolves what is called a solute. In what is probably the …
It doesn’t matter if you call it soap, solvent, surface preparation, or whatever, chemistry is an important part of nearly every cleaning process. The first purpose of the chemistry in a cleaning application is to either dissolve the contaminant or, using some other mechanism, to break the attachment that the contaminant has to the substrate. …
English
Spanish
Chinese
Canada
Mexico
United Kingdom
