Case Study Series

Q: Is it reasonable to expect 100% carbon removal resulting from the cleaning operations alone?

A: No. However, we have improved the cleaning process. The conventional process removes, on average 80%. We’re removing 95% of the carbon. This has dramatically reduced the time required with the pb blaster and sandblaster at the end of the cleaning process.

Q: Which type of mechanical agitation is best for carbon removal?

A: Ultrasonics is by far the best. We have systems running at 40kHz, which is the standard frequency for most industrial ultrasonics. We also have some machines running at 25 kHz, and for the bigger parts, those work very well.

Q: When using the METALNOX cleaning process, do I need to apply a corrosion inhibitor in the final aqueous stage if I place cast aluminum parts in non-airconditioned storage for more than 60 days?

A: The Aqueous cleaning chemistry that we use removes carbon. The METALNOX chemistry contains corrosion inhibitors specific to aluminum parts, and at 4%, we can protect aluminum in a non-air-conditioned warehouse for a year or more.