Cleaning Nickel Plated Cold Rolled Steel Parts

Q: We’re noticing a lot of corrosion on our cold rolled steel parts after washing in a new process. Our process is washing with detergents and rinsing at 70C, using Liquinox and Citranox which we have in house.  Do we need different detergents to prevent corrosion?

A: Nickel plated cold rolled steel is commonly used in a variety of industries due to its desirable properties such as corrosion resistance, durability, and strength. Good news is you can use the same detergents and process, just at a lower temperature.  Higher temperatures can hasten corrosion with reactive metals like the nickel plated cold rolled steel here.

Higher temperatures are often a very good thing for quicker, more effective cleaning, but our detergents including Liquinox® Critical Cleaning Liquid Detergent and Citranox® Liquid Acid Cleaner and Detergent can work at a wide range of temperatures.  Using 1-2% detergents solutions at ambient temperatures, followed by an ambient DI water rinse and rapid drying (ex. an alcohol dip, wipe down or air blow) should greatly reduce corrosion.

Note that the acidic nature of Citranox detergent will be better at removing the inorganics and cleaning any corrosion that may form. 

For cleaning in a washer, or for other low foaming needs, Citrajet® Low-Foam Liquid Acid Cleaner/Rinse and similar procedures would be the way to proceed.