Cleaning a Collagen Coating

Q: We are currently looking to remove a collagen coating from PET fabric and was wondering what we should use.  We have Alconox powder, will that work?

A:  To clean polyethylene terephthalate (PET) we generally want to stay away from alkaline and high alkaline detergents.  Mildly alkaline is expected to be ok (< 10 pH).  As with all compatibility matters, certainly confirm in your existing setup, conditions, instruments and application.     

If you have Alconox® Powdered Precision Cleaner in house, it is certainly worth evaluating.  A better solution would be Tergazyme® Enzyme-Active Powdered Detergent  as the proteases can assist the powerful emulsifiers in the Tergazyme cleaner to break down the collagenous residue.  Tergazyme detergent is similarly completely free rinsing, biodegradable, interfering residue free and drain safe.

A 1-2% concentrate, warm (< 130F/55C) solution and through rinsing should yield very good results.