Trial Purpose:
To evaluate the effectiveness of five drop-in solvents at removing aged lubricant on aluminum alloys.
Date Run:
07/24/2017Experiment Procedure:
Preweighed aluminum coupons were tested for each cleaner. Coupons were soiled with Blasocut 2000 Universal lubricant (CAS 64742-52-5; 61790-44-1; 68608-26-4; 63449-39-8; 107-41-5; 770-35-4) using a swab to cover the bottom third of the substrate and air dried for 20 minutes. Coupons were then soaked in water for 10 minutes and air dried for four days before recording dirty weights. Coupons were immersed, three at a time, in a beaker with 200ml of the chosen cleaner at room temperature (68 F) for five minutes. Visual observations were taken during this time, and final weights were recorded after cleaning. This process was repeated for each cleaner on Blasocut 2000 Universal.
Trial Results:
| Cleaner | Initial wt. | Final wt. | % Removed | Average % Removed |
| Fluosolv CX | ||||
| 0.0222 | 0.0031 | 86.04 | 78.16 | |
| 0.0424 | 0.0123 | 70.99 | ||
| 0.0430 | 0.0097 | 77.44 | ||
| Fluosolv NC | ||||
| 0.0646 | 0.0009 | 98.61 | 98.07 | |
| 0.0857 | 0.0016 | 98.13 | ||
| 0.0475 | 0.0012 | 97.47 | ||
| Solstice PF | ||||
| 0.0653 | 0.0011 | 98.32 | 98.37 | |
| 0.1009 | 0.0027 | 97.32 | ||
| 0.0938 | 0.0005 | 99.47 | ||
| Solstice PF-2A | ||||
| 0.0692 | 0.0012 | 98.27 | 98.09 | |
| 0.0580 | 0.0013 | 97.76 | ||
| 0.0735 | 0.0013 | 98.23 | ||
| Vertrel Sion | ||||
| 0.1478 | 0.0000 | 100.00 | 99.62 | |
| 0.0960 | 0.0005 | 99.48 | ||
| 0.1123 | 0.0007 | 99.38 |
Fluosolv CX had residue still on the coupons after five minutes of immersion. The other four drop-in solvents performed the same and no soil was visable after cleaning.
Success Rating:
Preliminary compatibility tests on substrate coupons encouraging for at least one cleaning chemistry. More in-depth laboratory testing necessary.Conclusion:
Four of the five drop-in solvents were effective at removing aged Blasocut 2000 Universal on aluminum. Next step would be to try incorporating agitation and increase immersion time. Not all products will be used in future testing due to EHS criteria and performance.
