Foam cleaning of surfaces

• US 3,037,887 A
• Filed: 05/04/1959
• Issued: 06/05/1962
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/1959
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: James P. Engle, John W. Brenner
• Original Assignee: James P. Engle, John W. Brenner
• Inventors: Brenner, John W., Engle, James P.
• Application Number:
  US03/810,837
• Time in Patent Office: 1,128 Days
• US Class Current: 134/22.18
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 3/003 Cleaning involving contact with foam
• CPC Class Codes: C23G 1/00 Cleaning or pickling metallic material with solutions or molten salts with organic solvents C23G5/02
• CPC Class Codes: F28G 9/00 Cleaning by flushing or washing, e.g. with chemical solvents appliances using jets of fluid for removing debris F28G1/16, F28G3/16
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 261/26 Foam

Claims

1. THE METHOD OF TREATING THE INTERIOR SURFACE OF A CONFINING VESSEL TO REMOVE AN ADHEREING SUBSTANCE THEREFROM WHICH CONSISTS ESSENTIALLY OF DELIVERING A STREAM OF GAS INTO A CONFINED QUANTITY OF A LIQUID SOLVENT FOR SAID ADHERING SUBSTANCE, SAID SOLVENT CONTAINING IN ADMIXTURE THEREWITH BETWEEN 0.01 AND 1.0 PERCENT BY VOLUME THEREOF OF A SURFACTANT, THE GAS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY UNREACTIVE WITH THE SOLVENT, DISPERSING THE GAS IN THE SOLVENT TO FORM A FLUID FOAM OF THE GAS AND SOLVENT, CONTINUING TO DELIVER AND DISPERSE THE INCOMING GAS TO FORCE THE FOAM AS FORMED IN A CONFINED STREAM TO THE VESSEL BEING TREATED AT A RATE IN EXCESS OF THE COLLAPSE RATE OF THE FOAM SO AS TO FILL THE VESSEL SUBSTANTIALLY, MAINTAIN THE FOAM IN CONTACT WITH THE INTERIOR SURFACE OF THE VESSEL SO FILLED UNTIL AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID ADHERING SUBSTANCE IS REMOVED BY THE FOAM, AND CONTINUALLY CIRCULATING THE FOAM THROUGH THE VESSEL AT AN AVERAGE RATE OF AT LEAST 0.1 FOOT PER MINUTE.