Chemical CLeaning of Metals NZIC（化学清洗金属NZIC）.pdf

CHEMICAL CLEANING OF METALS Metal equipment must be cleaned from time to time to prevent damage and maintain efficiency of operation. The chemical cleaning of metals has a number of advantages over mechanical cleaning methods. The greatest of these are that the metal equipment to be cleaned doesnt need to be dismantled and reassembled, and the cleaning doesnt damage the equipment, leaving areas that are more vulnerable to corrosion than before. Metal equipment typically gets both organic and inorganic substances deposited on it, coming from various lubricating oils, corroding metal, deposited product, deposits from hard water etc. These are typically removed in a five step process, although this is varied depending on the exact nature of the scale (deposits). Step 1 - Cleaning with alkali Typically this is done with caustic soda (NaOH), and results in the removal of all polar substances such as fats and oils. The vegetable and animal oils are converted to glycerol and soap, and the petrol-derived oils (such as hydraulic oil) are emulsified (suspended in water) by any of a variety of emulsifiers. Step 2 - Rinsing This loosens the deposits on the metal and washes away both the alkali and the substances that it has removed. Step 3 - Cleaning with acid Acids remove any ionic deposits from the metal. The choice of acid depends not only on the price and how strong it is, but on what anion is associated with the hydronium ion. Sometimes a more expensive acid is used because the anion of the cheaper alternative forms an insoluble salt with the ion to be removed. Moreover, some substances, such as silicates, are hard to remove with acid and so a specialised acid (in this case HF) has to be used. Step 4 - Rinsing Again, this loosens deposits and removes the cleaning chemical ready for the next stage. Step 5 - Passifying with alkali The c