Degassing new solution placed in an ultrasonic cleaning system makes it work effectively to clean parts when needed. How we handle the cleaning solution in our ultrasonic cleaning system has a lot to do with how effectively it will work when we clean parts for the first time.
Every time a cleaning solution is handled—whether by the manufacturer during filling or processing, or by us when we pour it into our ultrasonic cleaners—it picks up small amounts of air that dissolve into the liquid.
These gasses—nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide, among others—stay dissolved in the solution until it is excited in some way and they get released, such as by heating, shaking, or yes, turning on our ultrasonic cleaning machine. And when they get released in this manner, they wreak havoc in the process, and render it ineffective until all of the gas is gone.
When we turn on our ultrasonic cleaners after filling them with fresh cleaning solution, the high-frequency pulsations begin to heat the gasses dissolved in the liquid. They start to collect and form large bubbles that eventually rise to the surface and escape, but while still in the tank, act like shock absorbers to prevent the pressure pulsations from forming the tiny, imploding bubbles necessary for effective ultrasonic cleaning.
Until all of the dissolved gas is gone, all of the energy created by the transducers goes into heating the gasses and gets absorbed by the bubbles they form, and as a result parts can’t be cleaned.
We can easily remedy the problem, however. We just have to remember to degas our solution anytime we add more or replace the existing cleaner. To degas the solution, we simply turn the ultrasonic cleaning system on with the new cleaner in the tank without any parts, and run it through a complete cleaning cycle. Adding a little heat, where possible, will speed up the process and remove the gasses more thoroughly and completely.
Ignoring the degassing step will not save time. In fact, it will cost time, since we will have to run parts through multiple cleaning cycles if we don’t first take the time to remove the dissolved gasses from the cleaning solution in our ultrasonic cleaning systems. It’s more efficient and effective to take the time as soon as new solution is introduced to degas it and get that step behind us, so we can clean parts properly later in the process.
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