Why does an ultrasonic cleaner work better with pure water than with an H20/Isopropanol mix?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultrasonic_cleaner
Specifically - why is the turbulence level significantly lower when and IPA + H20 mix is present in the tank? The IPA needs to be there, but with it, turbulence and cleaning effectiveness is reduced.
If you need more specific details, I can send them privately.
Honestly, if you're just going to grab a couple of links off the internet that are generalized and about ultrasonic cleaning, don't bother. If you have experience with this issue or know of a specific reference that discusses this sort of issue in detail, I want to hear it, and I'm willing to tip extra for the trouble.
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M$2 Answers
I presume you don't need me to give you a link supporting the fact that surfactants lower surface tension, and the fact that lowered surface tension leads to more cavitation seems to follow rather directly from that.
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M$
In cases where the contamination is soluble in IPA, however, the solvent affect of the added alcohol could equal or surpass the lost mechanical cleaning power of the mix.
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M$
Speed is of importance in this case, so going in the bath for longer isn't a serious option - both the solvent power of the IPA and mechanical cleaning action is needed, so my bet is that it is something that needs to be balanced somehow (be it frequency, power, volume of mix), and that is absurdly beyond the scope of the initial question.
Thanks again!
Anyway, I've got as much as I'd hoped to get. If it comes up again in the next couple of months I've got a couple people I can ask some private questions to :)
We mentioned this in a private discussion, but thanks for confirming it here.
