UltrasonicCleaning:FundamentalTheoryandApplication

Abstract
Apresentationdescribingthetheoryofultrasonicsandhowultrasonictechnologyisappliedtoprecisioncleaning.This
presentationwillexploretheimportanceandapplicationofultrasonicsinprecisioncleaningalongwithexplanationsof
ultrasoniccleaningequipmentanditsapplication.Processparametersforultrasoniccleaningwillbediscussedalongwith
proceduresforproperoperationofultrasoniccleaningequipmenttoachievemaximumresults.
Introduction
Cleaningtechnologyisinastateofchange.Vapordegreasingusingchlorinatedandfluorinatedsolvents,longthestandard
formostofindustry,isbeingphasedoutintheinterestoftheecologyofourplanet.Atthesametime,cleaningrequirements
arecontinuallyincreasing.Cleanlinesshasbecomeanimportantissueinmanyindustrieswhereitneverwasinthepast.In
industriessuchaselectronicswherecleanlinesswasalwaysimportant,ithasbecomemorecriticalinsupportofgrowing
technology.Itseemsthateachadvanceintechnologydemandsgreaterandgreaterattentiontocleanlinessforitssuccess.
Asaresult,thecleaningindustryhasbeenchallengedtodelivertheneededcleanlinessandhasdonesothroughrapid
innovationoverthepastseveralyears.Manyoftheseadvanceshaveinvolvedtheuseofultrasonictechnology.
Thecleaningindustryiscurrentlyinastruggletoreplacesolventdegreasingwithalternativeenvironmentallyfriendly
meansofcleaning.Althoughsubstitutewaterbased,semiaqueousandpetroleumbasedchemistriesareavailable,theyare
oftensomewhatlesseffectiveascleanersthanthesolventsandmaynotperformadequatelyinsomeapplicationsunlessa
mechanicalenergyboostisaddedtoassuretherequiredlevelsofcleanliness.Ultrasonicenergyisnowusedextensivelyin
criticalcleaningapplicationstobothspeedandenhancethecleaningeffectofthealternativechemistries.Thispaperis
intendedtofamiliarizethereaderwiththebasictheoryofultrasonicsandhowultrasonicenergycanbemosteffectively
appliedtoenhanceavarietyofcleaningprocesses.
WhatisUltrasonics?
Ultrasonicsisthescienceofsoundwavesabovethelimitsofhumanaudibility.Thefrequencyofasoundwavedeterminesits
toneorpitch.Lowfrequenciesproduceloworbasstones.Highfrequenciesproducehighortrebletones.Ultrasoundisa
soundwithapitchsohighthatitcannotbeheardbythehumanear.Frequenciesabove18Kilohertzareusuallyconsidered
tobeultrasonic.Thefrequenciesusedforultrasoniccleaningrangefrom20,000cyclespersecondorkilohertz(KHz)toover
100,000KHz.Themostcommonlyusedfrequenciesforindustrialcleaningarethosebetween20KHzand50KHz.
Frequenciesabove50KHzaremorecommonlyusedinsmalltabletopultrasoniccleanerssuchasthosefoundinjewelry
storesanddentaloffices.
TheTheoryofSoundWaves
Inordertounderstandthemechanicsofultrasonics,itisnecessarytofirsthaveabasic
understandingofsoundwaves,howtheyaregeneratedandhowtheytravelthrougha
conductingmedium.Thedictionarydefinessoundasthetransmissionofvibrationthroughan
elasticmediumwhichmaybeasolid,liquid,oragas.SoundWaveGenerationAsoundwave
isproducedwhenasolitaryorrepeatingdisplacementisgeneratedinasoundconducting
medium,suchasbyashockeventorvibratorymovement.Thedisplacementofairbythe
coneofaradiospeakerisagoodexampleofvibratorysoundwavesgeneratedbymechanical
movement.Asthespeakerconemovesbackandforth,theairinfrontoftheconeisalternately
compressedandrarefiedtoproducesoundwaves,whichtravelthroughtheairuntiltheyare
finallydissipated.Weareprobablymostfamiliarwithsoundwavesgeneratedbyalternating
mechanicalmotion.Therearealsosoundwaveswhicharecreatedbyasingleshockevent.
Anexampleisthunderwhichisgeneratedasairinstantaneouslychangesvolumeasaresultof
anelectricaldischarge(lightning).Anotherexampleofashockeventmightbethesound
createdasawoodenboardfallswithitsfaceagainstacementfloor.Shockeventsaresources
ofasinglecompressionwavewhichradiatesfromthesource.
TheNatureofSoundWaves

ThediagramaboveusesthecoilsofaspringsimilartoaSlinkytoytorepresentindividualmoleculesofasoundconducting
medium.Themoleculesinthemediumareinfluencedbyadjacentmoleculesinmuchthesamewaythatthecoilsofthe
springinfluenceoneanother.Thesourceofthesoundinthemodelisattheleft.Thecompressiongeneratedbythesound
sourceasitmovespropagatesdownthelengthofthespringaseachadjacentcoilofthespringpushesagainstitsneighbor.
Itisimportanttonotethat,althoughthewavetravelsfromoneendofthespringtotheother,theindividualcoilsremainintheir
samerelativepositions,beingdisplacedfirstonewayandthentheotherasthesoundwavepasses.Asaresult,eachcoilis
firstpartofacompressionasitispushedtowardthenextcoilandthenpartofararefactionasitrecedesfromtheadjacent
coil.Inmuchthesameway,anypointinasoundconductingmediumisalternatelysubjectedtocompressionandthen
rarefaction.Atapointintheareaofacompression,thepressureinthemediumispositive.Atapointintheareaofa
rarefaction,thepressureinthemediumisnegative.
CavitationandImplosion
Inelasticmediasuchasairandmostsolids,thereisacontinuoustransitionasasound
waveistransmitted.Innonelasticmediasuchaswaterandmostliquids,thereis
continuoustransitionaslongastheamplitudeorloudnessofthesoundisrelatively
low.Asamplitudeisincreased,however,themagnitudeofthenegativepressureinthe
areasofrarefactioneventuallybecomessufficienttocausetheliquidtofracturebecause
ofthenegativepressure,causingaphenomenonknownascavitation.Cavitation
bubblesarecreatedatsitesofrarefactionastheliquidfracturesortearsbecauseofthe
negativepressureofthesoundwaveintheliquid.Asthewavefrontspass,thecavitation
bubblesoscillateundertheinfluenceofpositivepressure,eventuallygrowingtoan
unstablesize.Finally,theviolentcollapseofthecavitationbubblesresultsin
implosions,whichcauseshockwavestoberadiatedfromthesitesofthecollapse.The
collapseandimplosionofmyriadcavitationbubblesthroughoutanultrasonically
activatedliquidresultintheeffectcommonlyassociatedwithultrasonics.Ithasbeen
calculatedthattemperaturesinexcessof10,000Fandpressuresinexcessof10,000
PSIaregeneratedattheimplosionsitesofcavitationbubbles.
BenefitsofUltrasonicsintheCleaningandRinsingProcesses
Cleaninginmostinstancesrequiresthatacontaminantbedissolved(asinthecaseofa
solublesoil),displaced(asinthecaseofanonsolublesoil)orbothdissolvedanddisplaced(asinthecaseofinsoluble
particlesbeingheldbyasolublebindersuchasoilorgrease).Themechanicaleffectofultrasonicenergycanbehelpfulin
bothspeedingdissolutionanddisplacingparticles.Justasitisbeneficialincleaning,ultrasonicsisalsobeneficialinthe
rinsingprocess.Residualcleaningchemicalsareremovedquicklyandcompletelybyultrasonicrinsing.
Inremovingacontaminantbydissolution,itisnecessaryforthesolventtocomeintocontactwithanddissolvethe
contaminant.Thecleaningactivitytakesplaceonlyattheinterfacebetweenthecleaningchemistryandthecontaminant.
(Figure1)

Figure1
Asthecleaningchemistrydissolvesthecontaminant,asaturatedlayerdevelopsattheinterfacebetweenthefreshcleaning
chemistryandthecontaminant.Oncethishashappened,cleaningactionstopsasthesaturatedchemistrycannolonger
attackthecontaminant.Freshchemistrycannotreachthecontaminant.(Figure2)

Figure2
Ultrasoniccavitationandimplosioneffectivelydisplacethesaturatedlayertoallowfreshchemistrytocomeintocontactwith
thecontaminantremainingtoberemoved.Thisisespeciallybeneficialwhenirregularsurfacesorinternalpassagewaysare
tobecleaned.(Figure3)

Figure3
UltrasonicsSpeedsCleaningbyDissolution
Somecontaminantsarecomprisedofinsolubleparticleslooselyattachedandheldinplacebyionicorcohesiveforces.
Theseparticlesneedonlybedisplacedsufficientlytobreaktheattractiveforcestoberemoved.(Figure4)

Figure4
Cavitationandimplosionasaresultofultrasonicactivitydisplaceandremovelooselyheldcontaminantssuchasdustfrom
surfaces.Forthistobeeffective,itisnecessarythatthecouplingmediumbecapableofwettingtheparticlestoberemoved.
(Figure5)

Figure5

ComplexContaminants
Contaminationscanalso,ofcourse,bemorecomplexinnature,consistingofcombinationsoilsmadeupofbothsolubleand
insolublecomponents.Theeffectofultrasonicsissubstantiallythesameinthesecases,asthemechanicalmicroagitation
helpsspeedboththedissolutionofsolublecontaminantsandthedisplacementofinsolubleparticles.Ultrasonicactivityhas
alsobeendemonstratedtospeedorenhancetheeffectofmanychemicalreactions.Thisisprobablycausedmostlybythe
highenergylevelscreatedashighpressuresandtemperaturesarecreatedattheimplosionsites.Itislikelythatthesuperior
resultsachievedinmanyultrasoniccleaningoperationsmaybeatleastpartiallyattributedtothesonochemistryeffect.
ASuperiorProcess
Intheaboveillustrations,thesurfaceofthepartbeingcleanedhasbeenrepresentedasaflat.Inreality,surfacesareseldom
flat,insteadbeingcomprisedofhills,valleysandconvolutionsofalldescription.Figure6showswhyultrasonicenergyhas
beenproventobemoreeffectiveatenhancingcleaningthanotheralternatives,includingspraywashing,brushing,
turbulation,airagitation,andevenelectrocleaninginmanyapplications.Theabilityofultrasonicactivitytopenetrateand
assistthecleaningofinteriorsurfacesofcomplexpartsisalsoespeciallynoteworthy.

Figure6
UltrasonicEquipment
Tointroduceultrasonicenergyintoacleaningsystemrequiresanultrasonictransducerandanultrasonicpowersupplyor
generator.Thegeneratorsupplieselectricalenergyatthedesiredultrasonicfrequency.Theultrasonictransducerconverts
theelectricalenergyfromtheultrasonicgeneratorintomechanicalvibrations.
UltrasonicGenerator
Theultrasonicgeneratorconvertselectricalenergyfromthelinewhichistypicallyalternatingcurrentat50or60Hzto
electricalenergyattheultrasonicfrequency.Thisisaccomplishedinanumberofwaysbyvariousequipmentmanufacturers.
Currentultrasonicgeneratorsnearlyallusesolidstatetechnology.

Therehavebeenseveralrelativelyrecentinnovationsinultrasonicgeneratortechnologywhichmayenhancethe
effectivenessofultrasoniccleaningequipment.Theseincludesquarewaveoutputs,slowlyorrapidlypulsingtheultrasonic
energyonandoffandmodulatingorsweepingthefrequencyofthegeneratoroutputaroundthecentraloperating
frequency.Themostadvancedultrasonicgeneratorshaveprovisionsforadjustingavarietyofoutputparametersto
customizetheultrasonicenergyoutputforthetask.
SquareWaveOutput
Applyingasquarewavesignaltoanultrasonictransducerresultsinanacousticoutputrichinharmonics.Theresultisa
multifrequencycleaningsystemwhichvibratessimultaneouslyatseveralfrequencieswhichareharmonicsofthe
fundamentalfrequency.Multifrequencyoperationoffersthebenefitsofallfrequenciescombinedinasingleultrasonic
cleaningtank.
Pulse
Inpulseoperation,theultrasonicenergyisturnedonandoffataratewhichmayvaryfromonceeveryseveralsecondsto
severalhundredtimespersecond.

Thepercentageoftimethattheultrasonicenergyisonmayalsobechangedtoproducevariedresults.Atslowerpulserates,

morerapiddegassingofliquidsoccursascoalescingbubblesofairaregivenanopportunitytorisetothesurfaceofthe
liquidduringthetimetheultrasonicenergyisoff.Atmorerapidpulseratesthecleaningprocessmaybeenhancedas
repeatedhighenergyburstsofultrasonicenergyoccureachtimetheenergysourceisturnedon.
FrequencySweep
Insweepoperation,thefrequencyoftheoutputoftheultrasonicgeneratorismodulatedaroundacentralfrequencywhich
mayitselfbeadjustable.

Variouseffectsareproducedbychangingthespeedandmagnitudeofthefrequencymodulation.Thefrequencymaybe
modulatedfromonceeveryseveralsecondstoseveralhundredtimespersecondwiththemagnitudeofvariationranging
fromseveralhertztoseveralkilohertz.Sweepmaybeusedtopreventdamagetoextremelydelicatepartsortoreducethe
effectsofstandingwavesincleaningtanks.Sweepoperationmayalsobefoundespeciallyusefulinfacilitatingthecavitation
ofterpenesandpetroleumbasedchemistries.AcombinationofPulseandsweepoperationmayprovideevenbetterresults
whenthecavitationofterpenesandpetroleumbasedchemistriesisrequired.
FrequencyandAmplitude
Frequencyandamplitudearepropertiesofsoundwaves.Theillustrationsbelowdemonstratefrequencyandamplitudeusing
thespringmodelintroducedearlier.Inthediagram,ifAisthebasesoundwave,Bwithlessdisplacementofthemedia(less
intensecompressionandrarefaction)asthewavefrontpasses,representsasoundwaveoflessamplitudeorloudness.C
representsasoundwaveofhigherfrequencyindicatedbymorewavefrontspassingagivenpointwithinagivenperiodof
time.

UltrasonicTransducers
Therearetwogeneraltypesofultrasonictransducersinusetoday:Magnetostrictiveandpiezoelectric.Bothaccomplishthe
sametaskofconvertingalternatingelectricalenergytovibratorymechanicalenergybutdoitthroughtheuseofdifferent
means.

Magnetostrictive
Magnetostrictivetransducersutilizetheprincipleofmagnetostrictioninwhichcertainmaterialsexpandandcontractwhen
placedinanalternatingmagneticfield.

Alternatingelectricalenergyfromtheultrasonicgeneratorisfirstconvertedintoanalternatingmagneticfieldthroughtheuse
ofacoilofwire.Thealternatingmagneticfieldisthenusedtoinducemechanicalvibrationsattheultrasonicfrequencyin
resonantstripsofnickelorothermagnetostrictivematerialwhichareattachedtothesurfacetobevibrated.Because
magnetostrictivematerialsbehaveidenticallytoamagneticfieldofeitherpolarity,thefrequencyoftheelectricalenergy
appliedtothetransduceris1/2ofthedesiredoutputfrequency.Magnetostrictivetransducerswerefirsttosupplyarobust
sourceofultrasonicvibrationsforhighpowerapplicationssuchasultrasoniccleaning.
Becauseofinherentmechanicalconstraintsonthephysicalsizeofthehardwareaswellaselectricalandmagnetic
complications,highpowermagnetostrictivetransducersseldomoperateatfrequenciesmuchabove20kilohertz.
Piezoelectrictransducers,ontheotherhand,caneasilyoperatewellintothemegahertzrange.
Magnetostrictivetransducersaregenerallylessefficientthantheirpiezoelectriccounterparts.Thisisdueprimarilytothefact
thatthemagnetostrictivetransducerrequiresadualenergyconversionfromelectricaltomagneticandthenfrommagneticto
mechanical.Someefficiencyislostineachconversion.Magnetichysteresiseffectsalsodetractfromtheefficiencyofthe
magnetostrictivetransducer.
Piezoelectric
Piezoelectrictransducersconvertalternatingelectricalenergydirectlytomechanicalenergythroughuseofthepiezoelectric
effectinwhichcertainmaterialschangedimensionwhenanelectricalchargeisappliedtothem.

Electricalenergyattheultrasonicfrequencyissuppliedtothetransducerbytheultrasonicgenerator.Thiselectricalenergyis
appliedtopiezoelectricelement(s)inthetransducerwhichvibrate.Thesevibrationsareamplifiedbytheresonantmassesof
thetransduceranddirectedintotheliquidthroughtheradiatingplate.Earlypiezoelectrictransducersutilizedsuch
piezoelectricmaterialsasnaturallyoccurringquartzcrystalsandbariumtitanatewhichwerefragileandunstable.Early
piezoelectrictransducerswere,therefore,unreliable.Todaystransducersincorporatestronger,moreefficientandhighly
stableceramicpiezoelectricmaterialswhichweredevelopsasaresultoftheeffortsoftheUSNavyanditsresearchto
developadvancedsonartranspondersinthe1940s.Thevastmajorityoftransducersusedtodayforultrasoniccleaning
utilizethepiezoelectriceffect.
UltrasonicCleaningEquipment
Ultrasoniccleaningequipmentrangesfromthesmalltabletopunitsoftenfoundindentalofficesorjewelrystorestohuge
systemswithcapacitiesofseveralthousandgallonsusedinavarietyofindustrialapplications.Selectionordesignofthe
properequipmentisparamountinthesuccessofanyultrasoniccleaningapplication.
Thesimplestapplicationmayrequireonlyasimpleheatedtankcleanerwithrinsingtobedoneinasinkorinaseparate
container.Moresophisticatedcleaningsystemsincludeoneormorerinses,addedprocesstanksandhotairdryers.
Automationisoftenaddedtoreducelaborandguaranteeprocessconsistency.
Thelargestinstallationsutilizeimmersibleultrasonictransducerswhichcanbemountedonthesidesorbottomofcleaning
tanksofnearlyanysize.Immersibleultrasonictransducersoffermaximumflexibilityandeaseofinstallationandservice.
Heatedtankcleaningsystems(figure7)areusedinlaboratoriesandforsmallbatchcleaningneeds.

Figure7
Small,selfcontainedcleaners(figure8)areusedindoctorsofficesandjewelrystores.

Figure8
Consolecleaningsystems(figure9)integrateultrasoniccleaningtank(s),rinsetank(s)andadryerforbatchcleaning.
SystemscanbeautomatedthroughtheuseofaPLCcontrolledmaterialhandlingsystem.

Figure9
Awiderangeofoptionsmaybeofferedincustomdesignedsystems,aspicturedinfigure10.Largescaleinstallationsor
retrofittingofexistingtanksinplatinglines,etc.,canbeachievedthroughtheuseofmodularimmersibleultrasonic
transducers.Ultrasonicgeneratorsareoftenhousedinclimatecontrolledenclosures.

Figure10

MaximizingtheUltrasonicCleaningProcess
ProcessParameters
Effectiveapplicationoftheultrasoniccleaningprocessrequiresconsiderationofanumberofparameters.Whiletime,
temperatureandchemicalremainimportantinultrasoniccleaningastheyareinothercleaningtechnologies,thereareother
factorswhichmustbeconsideredtomaximizetheeffectivenessoftheprocess.Especiallyimportantarethosevariables
whichaffecttheintensityofultrasoniccavitationintheliquid.
MaximizingCavitation
Maximizingcavitationofthecleaningliquidisobviouslyveryimportanttothesuccessoftheultrasoniccleaningprocess.
Severalvariablesaffectcavitationintensity.
Temperatureisthemostimportantsingleparametertobeconsideredinmaximizingcavitationintensity.Thisisbecauseso
manyliquidpropertiesaffectingcavitationintensityarerelatedtotemperature.Changesintemperatureresultinchangesin
viscosity,thesolubilityofgasintheliquid,thediffusionrateofdissolvedgassesintheliquid,andvaporpressure,allofwhich
affectcavitationintensity.Inpurewater,thecavitationeffectismaximizedatapproximately160F.
Theviscosityofaliquidmustbeminimizedformaximumcavitationeffect.Viscousliquidsaresluggishandcannotrespond
quicklyenoughtoformcavitationbubblesandviolentimplosion.Theviscosityofmostliquidsisreducedastemperatureis
increased.
Formosteffectivecavitation,thecleaningliquidmustcontainaslittledissolvedgasaspossible.Gasdissolvedintheliquidis
releasedduringthebubblegrowthphaseofcavitationandpreventsitsviolentimplosionwhichisrequiredforthedesired
ultrasoniceffect.Theamountofdissolvedgasinaliquidisreducedastheliquidtemperatureisincreased.
Thediffusionrateofdissolvedgassesinaliquidisincreasedathighertemperatures.Thismeansthatliquidsathigher
temperaturesgiveupdissolvedgassesmorereadilythanthoseatlowertemperatures,whichaidsinminimizingtheamount
ofdissolvedgasintheliquid.
Amoderateincreaseinthetemperatureofaliquidbringsitclosertoitsvaporpressure,meaningthatvaporouscavitationis
moreeasilyachieved.Vaporouscavitation,inwhichthecavitationbubblesarefilledwiththevaporofthecavitatingliquid,is
themosteffectiveformofcavitation.Astheboilingtemperatureisapproached,however,thecavitationintensityisreducedas
theliquidstartstoboilatthecavitationsites.
CavitationintensityisdirectlyrelatedtoUltrasonicPoweratthepowerlevelsgenerallyusedinultrasoniccleaningsystems.
Aspowerisincreasedsubstantiallyabovethecavitationthreshold,cavitationintensitylevelsoffandcanonlybefurther
increasedthroughtheuseoffocusingtechniques.
CavitationintensityisinverselyrelatedtoUltrasonicFrequency.Astheultrasonicfrequencyisincreased,cavitationintensity
isreducedbecauseofthesmallersizeofthecavitationbubblesandtheirresultantlessviolentimplosion.Thereductionin
cavitationeffectathigherfrequenciesmaybeovercomebyincreasingtheultrasonicpower.
ImportanceofMinimizingDissolvedGas

Duringthenegativepressureportionofthesoundwave,theliquidistornapartand
cavitationbubblesstarttoform.Asanegativepressuredevelopswithinthebubble,
gassesdissolvedinthecavitatingliquidstarttodiffuseacrosstheboundaryintothe
bubble.Asnegativepressureisreducedduetothepassingoftherarefactionportion
ofthesoundwaveandatmosphericpressureisreached,thecavitationbubblestarts
tocollapseduetoitsownsurfacetension.Duringthecompressionportionofthe
soundwave,anygaswhichdiffusedintothebubbleiscompressedandfinallystarts
todiffuseacrosstheboundaryagaintoreentertheliquid.Thisprocess,however,is
nevercompleteaslongasthebubblecontainsgassincethediffusionoutofthe
bubbledoesnotstartuntilthebubbleiscompressed.Andoncethebubbleis
compressed,theboundarysurfaceavailablefordiffusionisreduced.Asaresult,
cavitationbubblesformedinliquidscontaininggasdonotcollapseallthewayto
implosionbutratherresultinasmallpocketofcompressedgasintheliquid.This
phenomenoncanbeusefulindegassingliquids.Thesmallgasbubblesgroup
togetheruntiltheyfinallybecomesufficientlybuoyanttocometothesurfaceofthe
liquid.
MaximizingOverallCleaningEffect
CleaningChemicalselectionisextremelyimportanttotheoverallsuccessofthe
ultrasoniccleaningprocess.Theselectedchemicalmustbecompatiblewiththebase
metalbeingcleanedandhavethecapabilitytoremovethesoilswhicharepresent.It
mustalsocavitatewell.Mostcleaningchemicalscanbeusedsatisfactorilywith
ultrasonics.Someareformulatedespeciallyforusewithultrasonics.However,avoid
thenonfoamingformulationsnormallyusedinspraywashingapplications.Highlywettedformulationsarepreferred.Manyof
thenewpetroleumcleaners,aswellaspetroleumandterpenebasedsemiaqueouscleaners,arecompatiblewith
ultrasonics.Useoftheseformulationsmayrequiresomespecialequipmentconsiderations,includingincreasedultrasonic
power,tobeeffective.

Figure11
Temperaturewasmentionedearlierasbeingimportanttoachievingmaximumcavitation.Theeffectivenessofthecleaning
chemicalisalsorelatedtotemperature.Althoughthecavitationeffectismaximizedinpurewateratatemperatureof
approximately160F,optimumcleaningisoftenseenathigherorlowertemperaturesbecauseoftheeffectthattemperature
hasonthecleaningchemical.Asageneralrule,eachchemicalwillperformbestatitsrecommendedprocesstemperature
regardlessofthetemperatureeffectontheultrasonics.Forexample,althoughthemaximumultrasoniceffectisachievedat
160F,mosthighlycausticcleanersareusedatatemperaturesof180Fto190Fbecausethechemicaleffectisgreatly
enhancedbytheaddedtemperature.Othercleanersmaybefoundtobreakdownandlosetheireffectivenessifusedat
temperaturesinexcessofaslowas140F.Thebestpracticeistouseachemicalatitsmaximumrecommendedtemperature
notexceeding190F
Degassingofcleaningsolutionsisextremelyimportantinachievingsatisfactorycleaningresults.Freshsolutionsorsolutions
whichhavecooledmustbedegassedbeforeproceedingwithcleaning.Degassingisdoneafterthechemicalisaddedandis
accomplishedbyoperatingtheultrasonicenergyandraisingthesolutiontemperature.Thetimerequiredfordegassing
variesconsiderably,basedontankcapacityandsolutiontemperature,andmayrangefromseveralminutesforasmalltank

toanhourormoreforalargetank.Anunheatedtankmayrequireseveralhourstodegas.Degassingiscompletewhensmall
bubblesofgascannotbeseenrisingtothesurfaceoftheliquidandapatternofripplescanbeseen.

Figure12
TheUltrasonicPowerdeliveredtothecleaningtankmustbeadequatetocavitatetheentirevolumeofliquidwiththe
workloadinplace.Wattspergallonisaunitofmeasureoftenusedtomeasurethelevelofultrasonicpowerinacleaning
tank.Astankvolumeisincreased,thenumberofwattspergallonrequiredtoachievetherequiredperformanceisreduced.
Cleaningpartsthatareverymassiveorthathaveahighratioofsurfacetomassmayrequireadditionalultrasonicpower.
Excessivepowermaycausecavitationerosionorburningonsoftmetalparts.Ifawidevarietyofpartsistobecleanedina
singlecleaningsystem,anultrasonicpowercontrolisrecommendedtoallowthepowertobeadjustedasrequiredfor
variouscleaningneeds.PartExposuretoboththecleaningchemicalandultrasonicenergyisimportantforeffectivecleaning.
Caremustbetakentoensurethatallareasofthepartsbeingcleanedarefloodedwiththecleaningliquid.Partsbasketsand
fixturesmustbedesignedtoallowpenetrationofultrasonicenergyandtopositionthepartstoassurethattheyareexposed
totheultrasonicenergy.Itisoftennecessarytoindividuallyrackpartsinaspecificorientationorrotatethemduringthe
cleaningprocesstothoroughlycleaninternalpassagesandblindholes.
Conclusion
Properlyutilized,ultrasonicenergycancontributesignificantlytothespeedandeffectivenessofmanyimmersioncleaning
andrinsingprocesses.Itisespeciallybeneficialinincreasingtheeffectivenessoftodayspreferredaqueouscleaning
chemistriesand,infact,isnecessaryinmanyapplicationstoachievethedesiredlevelofcleanliness.Withultrasonics,
aqueouschemistriescanoftengiveresultssurpassingthosepreviouslyachievedusingsolvents.Ultrasonicsisnota
technologyofthefutureitisverymuchatechnologyoftoday.