PARTS CLEANING
BY RUSS WILLCUTT CONTRIBUTOR
28
JUNE 2017 — PFonline.com
Choosing the
Right Aqueous
Cleaning
Operation
For most machining processes, water-based
solutions treated with surfactants to cut oil,
remove debris and deburr rough edges are
clean, green and can be applied using tailored
technologies for particular applications.
When determining the best way to machine a part, dozens
of variables must be taken into consideration for choosing
the most effective method to clean the finished product
with an aqueous system. In addition to the customer's
own requirements, manufacturers must also factor in part
geometry, the material used, the shape of the chips that will
be generated, throughput and the need for quick change-
outs between different types of parts. The temperature of
the solution—and of the part itself as it exits machining—
is sometimes an issue as well, as is the process being
performed. Standard cut parts can often simply be sprayed
off, while lapped surfaces require ultrasonic cleaning to
remove tiny particulates.
Cleaning Technologies Group (CTG) says 80 percent of the
systems it sells are custom designed, according to Jeff Mills,
national sales manager for the Ransohoff division of CTG.
"Our first questions will generally be 'what are you making,
what are the materials you are using, what is your production
time allowance, and what are your customers' requirements?',"
he says. "From there, we can begin making suggestions about
the type of cleaning process that might work best for them and
even how robotics might be incorporated. And we don't take a
stock machine and start adding options. The vast majority of
the time, we're designing and building these systems from the
ground up according to the customer's exact specifications.
Then, we have the blueprints on file should they need another
system or another dozen of them."
According to Mills, there are four basic methods to
performing water-based cleaning operations in metalworking: