• What is dry ice?
• What is dry ice blasting?
• Why use dry ice instead of a traditional blast media?
• How does the process work?
• What happens to the contaminants?
• Do the contaminants or dry ice pellets ricochet?
• Will dry ice blasting damage the substrate?
• Can you use dry ice blasting to clean hot tools online?
• Does dry ice blasting cool the substrate?
• Will the temperature drop damage the hot mold?
• Will the process create condensation?
• Is it safe to use dry ice blasting outside?
• Is it safe to blast in an enclosed area?

What is dry ice? (top)

Dry ice is the solid form of Carbon Dioxide (CO2). CO2 is a colorless, tasteless, odorless gas found naturally in our atmosphere.

What is dry ice blasting? (top)

Dry ice blasting is similar to sand blasting, plastic bead blasting, or soda blasting where a medium is accelerated in a pressurized air stream to impact a surface being cleaned or prepared. But that's where the similarity ends. Instead of using hard abrasive media to grind on a surface (and damage it), dry ice blasting uses dry ice, accelerated at supersonic speeds, and creates mini-explosions on the surface to lift the undesirable item off the underlying substrate.

Why use dry ice instead of a traditional blast media? (top)

All other blast media leave secondary waste behind. Dry ice sublimates (vaporizes) upon impact with the surface. All that remains is the contaminant we are removing. Also, since dry ice vaporizes on impact, the process can be used to clean complicated cavities, where typical grit blast media would become trapped.

How does the process work? (top)

Unlike other blast media, dry ice has temperature of –109°F (-78.3°C). Because of the temperature deference between the dry ice particles and the surface being treated, thermal shock occurs during the process of ice blasting. This causes a breakdown of the bond between two dissimilar materials.

What happens to the contaminant? (top)

Contaminates are dry, wet, hard or soft. Dry contaminates will break up into small chips and are swept up or vacuumed. The particles are large enough that they do not become airborne. If the contaminate is wet, such as grease or oils, the stream will move or push the liquid away much like a high pressure water stream would, except that the surface where the contaminant was will be dry and clean.

Do the contaminants or dry ice pellets ricochet? (top)

Upon impact, dry ice pellets sublimate to a gaseous state and therefore dry ice particles typically do not ricochet. The removed contaminants are moved away by blasting air. However, safety gear is worn at all times during the operation. And protective barriers may be erected.

Will dry ice blasting damage the substrate? (top)

Our dry ice blasting process will not damage the substrate. The size of the dry ice pellets and their velocity can be optimized to remove the contaminant while being non-abrasive to the substrate. Our process can clean all delicate surfaces without causing damage. Even live electrical apparatus can be safely cleaned because the process is non–conductive.

Can you use dry ice blasting to clean hot tools online? (top)

Yes. In fact, dry ice blasting cleans faster when the substrate is hot, and again the process is non-conductive.

Does dry ice blasting cool the substrate? (top)

Yes, but not dramatically. The amount of cooling depends on the substrate material, the dwell time of the dry ice blast stream, and the dry ice usage.

Will the temperature drop damage the hot mold? (top)

The temperature change of the surface being cleaned is small and the corresponding tensile stress will be well below the point of what most molds will encounter during normal heat treatment.

Will the process create condensation? (top)

Condensation occurs when the temperature of the substrate falls below the dew point. The dew point varies with climate and the daily weather patterns. When cleaning hot substrates, condensation will rarely occur because the temperature of the surface will stay above the dew point.

Is it safe to use dry ice blasting outside? (top)

Yes. CO2 dry ice is safe to use in outdoor blasting applications.

Is it safe to blast in an enclosed area? (top)

Yes, with proper ventilation or in a large enough areas that CO2 can disperse. If the space does not have sufficient ventilation or space we will utilize portable air and exhaust units.