WCA MAY 2015

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30 Wire & Cable ASIA – May/June 2015
Technologynews
WHEN looking for a cleaning system for wires and cables
etc, you can often be faced with a dilemma. Which method,
in general mechanical or wet-chemically, is suitable for the
desired surface quality?
Budget or available space is limited, and the range of
manufacturers of in-line cleaning systems as well as the
current market solutions is manageable. The appropriate
method is difficult to determine at first glance.
As a result there is often an attempt to construct and
implement your own solutions only to find that the outcome
is, despite intense input of time and material, inadequate.
Basically, the definition of the cleaning target and the
analysis of the surface texture should be at the beginning of
the search. Only when these points are defined, the choice
of the suitable method and, if necessary, a suitable cleaning
agent, can be carried out.
As mentioned, usually a subdivision in ‘mechanical cleaning’
and ‘chemical cleaning’ is made, whereby nearly all
mechanical cleaning methods can be combined with the
chemical cleaning.
On ‘mechanical cleaning’ the contamination is removed by
the mechanical frictional force of normally solid cleaning
materials such as brushes, textiles and microfibres. To
remove gross contamination from the wire surface the
cleaning with brushes or textile materials is very effective.
Since the surface characteristics of the wire are far from
ideal due to, for example, fine cracks and defects, these
methods quickly reach their limits.
‘Chemical cleaning’ means, in most cases, that a fluid
exposure performs the cleaning. The performance of
these methods is considerably improved by increasing the
velocity of the liquid by means of high pressure, ultrasonic
or steam relaxation.
Cleaning processes with liquids, supported by ultrasonic,
high pressure or steam, can substantially meet the
challenging task of removing dirt even from the smallest
surface defects.
Finally, the effectiveness of the cleaning process depends
on how targeted the cleaning power (force or impulse) can
be applied to the contamination for a certain time.
Since the choice of the appropriate cleaning method is
determined by many other factors, a comprehensive
analysis of all parameters should be undertaken. This is
precisely the approach GEO-Reinigungstechnik GmbH
has selected.
For the last two decades GEO has explicitly dealt with the
cleaning of continuous profiles such as wires, ribbons,
strands and cables.
The procedures can be tested under near-production
conditions at GEO’s test laboratory and from the
knowledge gained, suitable solutions can be selected and
implemented.
GEO-Reinigungstechnik GmbH – Germany
Website:
Wire cleaning – the dilemma
❍ Many factors should be considered when choosing the
appropriate cleaning method
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