Fact Sheet: Evaluating Cleaning Liquids for Industrial Cleaning

A pollution prevention fact sheet on Evaluating Cleaning Liquids for industrial cleaning.

#4 Evaluating Cleaning Liquids

"If I can't buy Tri-chlor or Freon, how will I clean my parts?" This is a common question in industry today. Fortunately there are numerous options (wet and dry) available as substitutes for chlorinated solvents. "Wet" alternatives include aqueous cleaners, terpenes, hydrocarbon blends and other assorted materials such as NMP or supercritical CO2. These cleaners are safer and more environmentally friendly than chlorinated solvents and offer relief from the regulatory pressures often associated with solvent use. And yes, they do work. Extensive testing, much of it done by the military, has shown that many of these cleaners perform as well or better than the chlorinated solvents they're replacing.

Evaluating Cleaning Liquids

The most important part of choosing a replacement for chlorinated solvents is to ask ALL the important questions about ALL of the options. If you know about the cost and recyclability of product 'A' and you know about the cleaning efficiency and safety requirements for product 'B', you cannot compare the two. Look closely at vendor literature and you will see that you seldom get a complete description of a product's characteristics. An information matrix or grid can be a very helpful tool in this situation. On a vertical axis you can list the alternatives to be evaluated; on the horizontal axis, all of the questions or considerations. Considerations that we use for evaluating cleaning liquids are:

• soil type (oil & grease, resins, hydrocarbon deposits, etc.)
  
• substrate (ferrous, aluminum, zinc, plastic, etc.)
  
• process (plating, painting, engine overhaul, etc.)
  
• expectations (rinse step, dry step, residue)
  
• hazards (dermal and inhalation, VOC content, ozone depletion)
  
• recyclability (how often must product be disposed of...?)
  
• disposal (... and then how do you get rid of it?)
  
• product cost ( this is a relatively minor cost. Treat it that way!!!)
  
• equipment cost (don't forget the cost of rinsing and drying equipment)
  
• If you want to know a product's good points, ask the vendor.
  
• If you want to know a product's not-so good points, ask the competition.
  
• Contact others who have cleaning needs similar to yours. What worked for them? What didn't work for them? What problems are they having?
  
• Three little words of advice: Test, Test, Test! Avoid vendors who will not test wash your parts under your supervision and specifications.

1. Introduction
   
2. Common Pollution Prevention Opportunities
   
3. Using Aqueous Cleaners
   
4. Evaluating Cleaning Liquids
   
5. Aqueous Cleaner Additives
   
6. Terpene Cleaners
   
7. Dry (Non-Solvent) Cleaning
   
8. New Cleaning Solvents
   
9. Hydrocarbon Cleaners
   
10. Cleaning Equipment
    
11. Vendors of Cleaners & Equipment