Dry ice is driven through a piece of pressurizing equipment to create a continuous air stream during dry ice blasting, also known as CO2 blasting. Then, to remove dirt and clean a surface, this air stream is aimed at that surface. Dry ice blasting is a non-toxic, non-conductive, and non-abrasive cleaning technique that produces no secondary waste after cleanup.
This article highlights two types of dry ice blasting techniques and outlines their benefits and drawbacks to aid you in choosing the finest dry ice blasting technique.
Different Dry Ice Blasting Techniques
There are two main CO2 blasting techniques for cleaning, and they are as follows:
Double-hose systems
Single-hose systems
The main distinction between these two approaches is the intensity of the cleaning ice particles’ blasting force or level of hostility. The aggressiveness of the cleaning media is also influenced by the type of ice utilized. For instance, shaved dry ice blocks have a different cleaning aggression than dry ice pellets. Depending on your application, another method can be ideal for your cleaning requirements, but neither technique produces any more trash.
Dry Ice Cleaning Systems for a Single Hose
In the middle of the 1980s, the single-hose dry ice cleaning technique was initially applied. A single hose connects the hopper and applicator in the system’s machinery. Additionally, the machine incorporates a feeder mechanism that forces dry ice and pressurized air into a single pipe.
The pressurized air forced into the hose accelerates the dry ice particles that are pushed there. This produces an air stream that is forced along the hose’s entire length. The method generates a stream of ice particles that are aggressive, have good cleaning kinetic energy, and produce no secondary waste.
The Benefits and Drawbacks of a Single-Hose System
The benefit of using the single-hose method is that you can utilize a longer hose than you would with a two-hose system. Therefore, you may clean regions far from your dry ice blasting equipment with a single-hose system because of the hose’s length without sacrificing the blast’s power. The single-hose technique is also more aggressive in cleaning particles, making it perfect for blasting steeply high surfaces.
Early CO2 blasting systems used the two-hose method, which depends on the Venturi effect to force or accelerate the cleaning ice particles through the hose. In this technique, dry ice and pressurized air are both introduced into the applicator through separate hoses. Then, the applicator and the hopper are connected via a second hose. The double hose’s second hose generates a suction force as the compressed air flows through the applicator, drawing dry ice cleaning ice particles from the hopper.
The applicator, which directs the air stream carrying the two cleaning agents to the cleaning surface, passes through the mixture of the two cleaning agents. The blast’s low kinetic energy reduces the two-hose system’s cleaning power. There are restrictions on the hose’s usable length as well.
Due to these restrictions, a similar dry ice cleaning technology cannot be used to clean vertical surfaces. In addition, even though this method produces no secondary waste, the two-hose system nozzle is still constrained by the dry ice discharge’s slow impact velocity.
Conclusion
Dry ice blasting is the best cleaning technique for commercial and industrial facilities that produce a wide range of items. It is perfect since it is inexpensive, quick, dependable, and leaves no secondary waste. Therefore, these cleaning techniques are ideal for the food manufacturing sector. In addition, the procedures are perfect since food preparation necessitates a high hygiene standard. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that each year, at least one in six Americans becomes ill due to tainted food or beverages. Such food poisoning may be caused by faulty food preparation in contaminated environments. However, the dry ice blasting technique allows for avoiding such contamination issues. Before anyone gets sick, you can resolve these industrial cleaning difficulties by working with a reliable dry ice blasting cleaning business.