Surface World April 2019 Surface World April 2019 | Page 10
COMPANY SPOTLIGHT
Next generation cleaning
technologies are out of this world
Graham Fraser,
MD of Fraser
Technologies,
discusses the
next generation
of cleaning
technologies
and how they’re
revolutionising
environmental
impact
Along with low GWP, solvents also offer speed and efficiency,
which shorten lead times and reduce costs. There are lower capital
equipment costs than with comparable water-based systems, so there
is a low cost of ownership and a smaller equipment footprint. Plus,
they are extremely easy and safe to use. These benefits combined
with extremely high precision cleaning, make solvents a very attractive
option for many businesses.
To the Moon and Back
One of our most popular products is Opteon™ SF79; a non-
flammable, fast drying cleaning solvent from Chemours™,
which is designed to clean a wide range of soils from mechanical
components, electronics, optics, military hardware, etc. both in
existing solvent cleaning systems, and cold cleaning applications.
It is ideally suited for vapour degreasing, precision cleaning and
removal of greases and oils.
When considering how to clean or degrease products or components,
businesses will find they are faced with a choice between water-based
aqueous cleaning and using solvents. While many people have an
instant reaction to steer clear of solvents due to their controversial
history, there is an impressive new wave of cleaning technologies that
should not be ignored. It was designed to be safe for the operators and for the environment,
and replaces many of the high cost HFE materials as well as nPB,
HFC-365 blends and other hazardous chlorinated solvents, such as
Trike, Methylene Chloride and Perk. It is also a safe, viable alternative
to fast evaporating flammable materials such as IPA, Acetone,
Thinners and MEK, typically used in hand cleaning applications.
There’s no denying that in the past, many solvents were detrimental
to health and the environment, and the majority of people probably
believe that this is still the case. However, the solvents of the 80s
and 90s have been left in the past, and the current generation of
chemicals are just as safe as the aqueous solutions people have
become accustomed to. SF79 is usually used as a replacement for either hazardous or
high-cost cleaning solvents for the removal of oils, flux, liquors, paint,
machining or sanding particulate. It has a very high wetting index
(low surface tension, viscosity and density) and can remove particulate
down to submicron levels without leaving residues.
While there are instances where aqueous cleaning provides the
best results, many applications are best suited to solvent cleaning.
Plus, as solvents can be considered a ‘dry’ cleaning option, this
process is ideal for water-sensitive or difficult to dry components.
With the introduction of solvents such as the Opteon™ range from
Chemours™, solvent cleaning has once again become a viable, safe
and cost-effective option, and it is fast becoming a favoured choice.
It is a simple process that can be very effective and easy to manage.
With the use of low boiling point, non-flammable products,
components can be cleaned to an exceptionally high standard
with minimal cost and capital investment.
These cleaning solvents use eco-friendly chemistries, which offer
a superior cleaning performance. They are low in cost and provide
a genuine alternative to the old hazardous solvents which have
now been banned or restricted. The Chemours™ range of safe,
environmentally friendly solvents have become widely accepted
as best in class, next generation fluids and are approved for use
in a large range of standard cleaning systems.
Solvents can now boast low global warming potential (GWP).
GWP is a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth’s
atmosphere, generally attributed to the greenhouse effect, caused
by increased levels of carbon dioxide, CFCs, and other pollutants.
GWP is used to represent the equivalent of Co2 being released
into the atmosphere. So 1kg of CO2 = a GWP of 1.
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APRIL 2019
Chemours™ has recently launched a re-modified version of SF79,
helpfully named SF80, which offers all of the benefits of SF79, but
with an even lower GWP. While SF79 has an impressive GWP of less
than 15, SF80 has a GWP of less than 2. On average, competitors’
products have a GWP of around 40, and until now, SF79 was the
lowest GWP of any fluorinated solvent on the market by a significant
margin. SF80 offers real standout for businesses looking to improve
their environmental credentials.
The impact of this change is remarkable, and can be demonstrated
by a project we have undertaken with one of our customers, which
asked us to look at an alternative to the high-GWP solvent they
were using. At the time, the customer – a prominent aerospace
manufacturer - was using 7 Metric Tonnes of product per year.
We worked with them to approve SF79 and subsequently SF80 and
once on site, we assisted in optimising their processes to reduce
solvent consumption. We also introduced a solvent recovery process
to allow them to further reduce waste and reuse the recovered solvent.
This has taken the customer’s overall usage of solvent down by 28%.
While the existing product was less expensive than SF79, the reduction
in solvent usage has shown a significant cost reduction of around
£30,000 per year as well as a significant reduction in CO2
equivalent emissions.
With a GWP of 990, the CO2 emissions created by the customer
when using the alternative product were equal to the emissions of
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