Cleaning metal substrates using liquid/supercritical fluid carbon dioxide

Technical Report · Mon Jan 25 04:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:7224168

Motyl, K M; Thomas, R L ^[1]; Morales, L M

---

1. ed.

Liquid/supercritical fluid carbon dioxide (L/SCF-CO/sub 2/) can be employed as an alternative to halocarbon solvents that are conventionally used for washing organic and inorganic contaminants from the surface of metal parts and machining fines. The cleaning process was demonstrated at Rocky Flats Plant on the laboratory scale for steel and uranium substrates and was found compatible with plutonium metal. The efficacy of this new cleaning method depends on process pressure, temperature, and fluid flow rate as well as cleaning time. Within the parameter range studied, cleaning efficiency generally improved upon increasing process pressure and flow rate. To date, L/SCF-CO/sub 2/ cleaning has been used to effect very low residue cleaning of metal (steel, uranium) surfaces without halogen introduction. The process was also used successfully to remove more than 99.5% of the light hydraulic oil from steel fines. 29 refs., 25 figs., 1 tab.

• Research Organization: Rockwell International Corp., Golden, CO (USA). Rocky Flats Plant
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP03533
• OSTI ID: 7224168
• Report Number(s): RFP-4150; ON: DE88013617
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
360101* -- Metals & Alloys-- Preparation & Fabrication
360603 -- Materials-- Properties
ACTINIDES
ALLOYS
AROMATICS
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON DIOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
CLEANING
CONDENSED AROMATICS
CRITICAL PRESSURE
CRITICAL TEMPERATURE
DIAGRAMS
ELEMENTS
EQUATIONS
HYDROCARBONS
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
METALS
NAPHTHALENE
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PHASE DIAGRAMS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
PLUTONIUM
SOLUBILITY
STEELS
THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES
TRANSITION TEMPERATURE
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
URANIUM