TechNotes

Q. How to determine appropriate temperature to clean parts with ultrasonic cleaner?

A. In general, every 10 deg C you go up in temperature doubles the cleaning speed. The faster you want to clean the hotter you should get.

There is a theoretical optimal ultrasonic cavitation temperature at around 70 deg C depending on the exact concentration of detergent. Even though in theory cavitation…

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Q: I work for a medical device company where we make machined parts. I’m interested in finding a supplemental visual inspection tool that will aid in inspecting the surface of a part after being cleaned. A: We would recommend getting…..

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Q. Do I determine detergent dilution by weight or by volume or both?

A. In a laboratory setting, the most common method is to either make a weight/weight dilution (10-20 g Alconox detergent in 990 g of water), or a weight/volume dilution (10-20 g Alconox in 990 mL of water) for 1-2% solutions.  In manufacturing situations, often directions are written volume/volume or volume/weight.

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Q. Please provide advice on cleaning iron residues, Fe+2 and Fe+3, in lab glassware. We need to clean down to sub ppm levels.

A. The best iron salt removing detergent for manual cleaning of lab glassware is Citranox®. Citranox is a mild acid, high chelating detergent for high performance removal of…

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Q. We need to clean 3D printed plastic parts made of methacrylate. We need to make sure it’s safe for the plastic, but also ensures all crevices are residue free for critically clean parts.

A. Particulates and other residue, including environmental residues, can be effectively cleaned using a….

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Q: We are working with cannabis resin in our lab and the residue is very tough to remove.  We are currently using isopropyl alcohol and it is just not good enough.  Any advice?

A: It is no secret that waxy, sticky cannabis and other botanical resins are some of the most difficult residues to clean.  But of course, keeping your labware, glassware and other laboratory equipment clean is vital. 

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Q: Is a 1% Alconox solution stable in tap water? How long can 1% Alconox be stored as solution? Is pH measurement the best estimate of stability?. A: lconox® Powdered Precision Cleaner,  is stable in tap water (or any purity water- within reason) for….

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Q. We are having foaming issues in ultrasonic cleaner. Basically, we are looking for a non-foaming version of the Liquinox cleaner we are currently using.  Can you use a detergent that doesn’t foam in an ultrasonic bath? A. Depending on what the foaming issue is, you may be able to continue using Liquinox detergent. As a general statement….

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How do we go about reducing foam suds in our 1% Liquinox ultrasonic bath? We have 3 ultrasonic tanks in our series process. Bath 1 has the 1% solution. Bath 2 and 3 are a rinsing cascade system with RO water only. The foam is building up in tank 1 and then transfers to tank 2.

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Q. How can I clean proteins, RNA, and DNA from laboratory equipment?

A. Thank you for your question concerning cleaning proteins, RNA and DNA from laboratory equipment.

We will address each separately . . .

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