64 / 2024-09-22 11:13:28

Investigation on Paint Removal from Polymer Substrates by Ice Air Jet

paint removal, ice jet, blasting, damage, surface roughness

Ice jet (blasting) technology shows a promising prospect of application and extension in surface cleaning and de-painting engineering because of its environmentally friendly feature. The main objective of this work is to present a pilot experimental study on the organic paint removal from poly propylene (PP) substrates and the surface damage development by ice jet. The effect of ice blasting pressure and blasting time on de-painting and damage to the substrate material is mainly concerned. It is shown that blasting pressure of ice jet is the most important process parameter influencing the effect of de-painting. Even at blasting pressure of 0.2MPa, paint coatings can be stripped from the PP substrates. The paint coatings, moreover, are removed more effectively with increasing blasting pressure. The resulted profiles of the substrate surface show that PP surface is roughened obviously after being blasted by ice jet for more than 5 seconds at the blasting pressure of 0.7MPa. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images show that deformation and delamination on the blasted PP surfaces are main factors of roughening of the substrate.