Industrial dry ice blasting is a safe, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly way to clean machinery and equipment. A form of industrial cleaning, it removes sludge, paint, surface rust, oil, mold growth, soot, and other contaminants from machines. CO2 blasting, as dry ice blasting is also known, uses compressed air to accelerate a stream of frozen carbon dioxide (CO2) particles at surfaces. Because these pellets change from a solid into a gas, dry ice cleaning creates no secondary waste – an advantage over sand blasting. Plus, unlike chemical cleaning, dry ice blasting does not require solvents.
In addition to reducing waste, industrial dry ice blasting can eliminate or greatly reduce damage to machine or equipment surfaces. That’s because CO2 cleaning is non-abrasive, non-corrosive, and non-toxic. Dry ice blasting is also EPA, FDA, and USDA approved and offers cost-saving advantages over sand blasting, soda blasting, and power washing, all of which require time-consuming cleanups. Depending on the type of dry ice blaster and its parameters, industrial cleaning can range from delicate to aggressive. Plus, as this video shows, an operator can guide the dry ice blast over a focused area or achieve general coverage.
Dry Ice Cleaning: Four Case Studies
Nitrofreeze® of Worcester, Massachusetts (USA) provides Cold Jet® dry ice blasting equipment for sale or rent to companies across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic region. As the following sections explain, our crews have used CO2 cleaning with many types of industrial machines and equipment. These are just a few of potential applications since dry ice blasters can also be used with generators, turbines, and injection molds – as well as for facilities maintenance and historic preservation.
#1 Mixing Pots and Oven Parts
A company that specializes in metallized paper needed to remove epoxy build-ups from mixing pots and heat discoloration from oven parts. In some places, the mixing pots had resin buildups that were over two inches thick. For the oven parts, the manufacturer wanted a faster method than scrubbing with wire brushes. Over a three-day period, Nitrofreeze® remove these contaminants and also cleaned a catwalk.
#2 Overhead Conveyor Lines
A manufacturer that specializes in residential and commercial HVAC systems needed to remove paint overspray from an overhead conveyor line. During a July 4th shutdown, Nitrofreeze® used industrial dry ice blasting to remove this unwanted material from the conveyor system’s chains, carriers, and other metal components. This YouTube video shows the project in action.
#3 Printing Presses
A provider of high-quality packaging needed to clean the three ink stations on a Heidelberg Speedmaster printing press. During the company’s winter shutdown, a Nitrofreeze® crew blasted the grippers, rollers, and surrounding structures to remove build-ups of water-based inks and other contaminants. The entire project took just five hours, a significant time savings over manual cleaning.
#4 Paper Mill Equipment
A paper mill wanted a faster way to clean large dryers with massive rollers. Cleaning the nine rollers on each machine is time-consuming and the mill needed a way to clean three machines in five days. Each roller had a different degree of build-up, too. Although the machines needed to be jogged to ensure proper cleaning, Nitrofreeze® completed the project during the mill’s holiday shutdown.
Nitrofreeze® Dry Ice Blasting for Industrial Machinery and Equipment
Nitrofreeze® is an experienced provider of dry ice blasting services. Years ago, we started out as the New England representative for Cold Jet. We then moved into a support role as we began getting our own customers. Today, Nitrofreeze® is more like a distribution center for Cold Jet’s growing family of dry ice blasting machines, which include the Aero2 PCS 60, the i3 MicroClean, and E-CO2 150 products – just to name a few. To learn more, contact us at the phone number and email below.
(508) 459-7447 x109 | info@nitrofreeze.com