Clean/Pretreat

This column inclides comments submitted to the EPA amended TSCA docket regarding 1-BP and related solvents.

Oteraccordi is an Italian leader in the field of thermo-hydraulics, sanitary fixing systems and industrial fixings.

“Survival of the fittest” is a tenet of Charles Darwin’s evolution of species as many United States manufacturers requiring critical product cleaning must develop survival strategies and tactics.

There are many changes in today’s solvent-cleaning world, and possibly more to come.

For several decades, this initial step in most finishing operations had been relegated to a general “all-purpose” status. 

Manufacturers are in a fascinating, frightening era. It is also an era with excellent opportunities for growth.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) on 1-bromopropane (1-BP), a solvent used in vapor degreasing.

Most of us, through experience, can relate to the strong link between effective filtration and quality metal finishing of parts.

As indicated in a recent LinkedIn post (Ref 1), perchloroethylene “creeps” – it has favorable wetting properties that allow access to residue in tight spaces.

A July 18 webinar will focus on “Successful Cleaning Processes without Heavily Regulated Solvents.”

It would be terrific to have a numerical comparison of how effective various cleaning agents are at removing soils.

A webinar on May 23 will look at solvent cleaning to reduce costs and improve sustainability.

Chlorinated and fluorinated — including Group 7 elements — solvents have enjoyed decades of popularity as robust and efficient means of cleaning parts as a first critical step in many metal finishing processes.

Brenk Brothers is in Fridley, Minnesota, and is a 3^rd-generation precision machining company. 

Jeff Beard of Jayco Cleaning Technologies discusses their single-basket washer system, which many surface finishing operations have found significantly helps in part cleaning.

A free webinar on navigating new solvent regulations in parts cleaning will be held on May 7 at 11:00 a.m. ET.

Change can be an unwanted headache many would rather not deal with unless forced to. 

Joshua McClellan is a Business Development Engineer at Hubbard-Hall.

The term “degreaser” is confusing as any cleaning chemistry or cleaning process that removes oils and greases is doing the task of degreasing.

With the U.S. EPA proposing to ban all uses of trichloroethylene in cleaning and vapor degreasing, many finishers wonder what alternatives they may have.

Barbara Kanegsberg is President of BFK Solutions, an industry leader in critical cleaning consulting in the finishing industry.

Bath maintenance is crucial to any finishing operation’s cleaning process.