Although, fortunately, we seldom encounter flammability issues in cleaning, it’s a good idea to be familiar with some of the terms like Upper and Lower Flammability and Explosive Limits for the sake of safety. In the preceding blog, it was explained that three things were needed to produce a fire – Fuel, Oxidizer, and a … Continued
The terms “flammable,” “inflammable,” and combustible all describe materials that will burn. Semantics and nebulous definitions of each have led not only to a great deal of confusion over the years but, probably, to several unfortunate accidents. In doing the research for this blog, I discovered that there is no simple and fast definition of … Continued
If you have worked around ultrasonic cleaning systems, you may have noticed that most of them are plastered with stickers warning against the use of flammable materials as cleaning agents. To those who are not familiar with various ultrasonic phenomena, these warnings may seem a bit extreme. In fact, however, flammable liquids may become even … Continued
Preceeding blogs have described two ways of reducing the ionic content of water for use in washing and rinsing applications. Although both reduce ionic content, the process commonly called “De-Ionization” uses a treated resin to capture ions while the “Reverse Osmosis” process uses a semi-permeable membrane. Choosing between the two in the design of a cleaning process … Continued
First of all, I would like to thank those of you have become “regulars” to the blog. Having written over 165 “informational” entries now, I am anxious to lift the blog to another level including reader discussions. Reader comments have always been welcome. For those of you who haven’t figured it out, all you have … Continued
The technology of parts cleaning is a very sophisticated science today. Most cleaning challenges can be met with the proper combination of equipment, chemistry and technique. In my 45 year involvement with parts cleaning, I have seen many twists and turns along the way. Applications that were considered “impossible” 10 or 20 years ago are … Continued
Water, the “universal” solvent is the center of most cleaning applications in the home. Water, at least in my location in the US, is readily available, plentiful and relatively inexpensive. Water plus a small amount of overly expensive and competitively merchandised chemicals does an admirable job of cleaning dishes and clothes which constitute about 50% of … Continued
Gee Whiz! I was sure somebody would challenge me on the last blog about washing dishes at home. But, since there are no comments (or fire bombs) in my inbox, I guess everybody agrees that the most efficient way to wash dishes at home is the “old fashioned” way with a dish rag and dish drainer. … Continued
Blackstone Ultrasonics was founded in the mid 1950’s in the hope that the addition of ultrasonic agitation to a conventional clothes washer would revolutionize laundering of fabrics. It didn’t take long before it was recognized that ultrasonic techniques weren’t going to be effective – at least not by simply adding ultrasonic transducers to a conventional … Continued
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. … Continued