Optimum Percent Liquinox

Q. What is the optimum percent Liquinox detergent to use?

A. As a general statement, optimum detergency is reached at a 1-2% concentration (optimum defined as amount of soil removed per unit of detergent used).

• Maximum detergency is typically reached at a 2-3% concentration (maximum defined as the total amount of soil removed per area of substrate without regard to amount of detergent used).
• Maximum cleaning capacity is often achieved at 4 or even 6% (cleaning capacity is defined as the amount of total parts cleaned or combined amount of residue removed before you have to change out baths).

If you are trying to clean many parts before you have to dump your soak/ultrasonic bath, then using 2-3% may make some sense. You may have to do extra rinsing to get the highest levels of cleaning when you use more than 2% concentrations of Liquinox® Critical Cleaning Liquid Detergent.

An important thing to ask is: What are you trying to optimize?  Detergency? Cleaning capacity? Detergent cost? Waste minimization? If the answer is “all of these,” then probably 2% is a reasonable compromise.

Many Alconox, Inc. customers are doing very sensitive critical cleaning, so they rarely operate their baths at anywhere near full cleaning capacity?  Therefore, 1-2% solutions are used and the bath solution is dumped long before full use of cleaning capacity has been achieved. Very often cross contamination from parts is a far greater concern than optimizing cleaning capacity.

These concepts can be considered applicable across all of our detergents.  Contact us any time to discuss your particular process!

To request any this or any Alconox, Inc. detergents for free, please complete the questionnaire at Get Sample. For more information about any one of our Alconox, Inc. detergents, consult the technical bulletin for each product. Or click here to access each of our detergent’s Safety Data Sheets.

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