No hazards, no permits

Bill Fisch of AccraTronics Seals Corporation, a contract machining company, found the LCO₂ process to be a “perfect fit” for his company’s cleaning requirements.

“Our cleaning requirements are basic: clean enough for inspection and for further processing internally or at various vendors,” stated Fisch.  “We have used TCA and, because of serious environmental issues in our area that have proven to be very expensive over many years, we wanted a cleaning system with zero environmental concerns.”

“We manufacture hermetically sealed connectors and precision component parts for the ordinance industry.  Our components vary in size between 1 and 8 cubic inches.  We consumed 55 gallons per month of TCA and, although the material, even at the current rate, is not that expensive, the risks and adjunct costs are exorbitant.”

“All existing solvent- or water-based methods require the use of hazardous materials and require permits from water and/or air regulatory agencies,” Fisch continued, adding that their LCO₂ system does not suffer from any of these deficiencies.  We have had a comprehensive number of production parts tested prior to our purchasing the system and found that it meets all of our needs including the elimination of potential etching of aluminum or rusting of steel.”
“The mental and financial relief of not having to deal with hazardous materials accidents, against which we can no longer buy insurance, is also of significant importance,” Fisch added in closing.

Source:
“Liquid CO₂ Immersion Cleaning: The User’s Point of View”, Parts Cleaning, April 1999