BOC’s Cryoclean Snow offers potential for Additive Manufacturing sector
February 5, 2016
BOC, the UK’s largest supplier of industrial gases and medical gases, officially launched its Cryoclean® Snow+ industrial cleaning process at the company’s Manufacturing Technology Centre in Wolverhampton on January 28, 2016.
Developed by BOC and its parent, The Linde Group, Cryoclean is a completely dry cleaning process in which liquid CO2 is pressurised to 60 bar, creating tiny dry ice crystals known as snow. When the snow is accelerated onto the component, using compressed air, contaminants become brittle. The gas jet then permeates cracks and lifts the contaminant off the surface, after which it is expelled through exhaust systems.
As well as being used to clean industrial products such as machinery, process equipment and conveyor belts, Cryoclean Snow+ is also finding application in the Additive Manufacturing sector, where it can be used to remove oxides from the surfaces of a number of materials including steels and aluminium along with the removal of un-fused metal powders.
By changing the ratio of CO2 and abrasive material, the operator can adjust the intensity of the cleaning process to match the condition of the surface. This is particularly useful where cleaning challenges vary within a process flow, with relatively clean areas followed by heavily soiled, chemically altered or even corroded zones.
“BOC is delighted to introduce Cryoclean® snow+ to the UK and Ireland industrial cleaning market. This innovative new technology delivers the same standard of cleaning faster and more efficiently than traditional wet cleaning. It is also more environmentally friendly and requires a smaller footprint,” stated Stuart Wilders, BOC’s Market Sector Manager for Advanced Manufacturing.
The Cryoclean Snow+ process from BOC
