January/February 2020 - 23

DRY ICE CLEANING
FOOD SAFETY
Dry ice cleaning an innovative sanitation alternative
DRY ICE CLEANING
By Tyson
Marlowe
Guest Columnist
i s an innovative
cleaning technology
that can save both
time and money in
the processing and
packaging industry.
Equipment and
facilities get dirty
with ink, glue, grease,
wax, plastic/rubber
molding process residues, carbon
residue, proteins, seasonings, crumbs
and other build-up, which prevents
equipment from operating at peak
efficiency and can shorten asset life.
Traditional cleaning methods can be
time-consuming, ineffective, involve
significant amounts of chemicals or
water - with the resulting residues
and secondary waste - or rely
on harmful abrasives that cause
damage and shorten the asset life
of the equipment. Dry ice cleaning
systems use recycled CO2
to clean and
prepare surfaces.
Using non-abrasive particles of
dry ice, accelerated with compressed
air, effectively replaces traditional
cleaning methods with a superior
process. As the dry ice particles
sublimate on impact, there is no
secondary waste created and equipment
can be cleaned dry and in place, without
time-consuming disassembly.
Additionally, the dry ice used is food
grade quality and using it to clean can
reduce contamination on surfaces of
bacteria such as salmonella, E. coli
and listeria. It can also reduce crosscontamination
caused by nuts and other
allergens and remove protein residues
on processing and packaging equipment.
Dry ice cleaning is fast, non-conductive,
non-toxic and environmental ly
responsible. It is a soft media and nonabrasive
on many surfaces so it can
be used to effectively clean delicate
components and equipment without
damage. Because it is a dry clean, it can
be used around electronics and other
sensitive components where cleaning
with water or other solvents would
normally be problematic.
 A before, left, and after look at how dry ice cleaning can effectively remove buildup on an oven.
Photo: Cold Jet
Dry ice cleaning makes cleaning
easier, more complete and enables food
manufacturing or packaging facilities
to quickly and easily clean a number
of different surfaces and get them back
into production immediately (no rinsing,
drying and less disassembly). Dry ice
cleaning is a proven superior cleaning
method for labelers, palletizers, BIB
and box formers, air decks, airveyors,
conveyors, de-nesters, palletizers, electric
motors, injection and blow mold cavities
and many other pieces of equipment.
The unique characteristics of dry ice
make it the perfect media for a cleanin-place
process.
No secondary waste
Cleaning with dry ice enhances
sustainability efforts. It sublimates
(turns from solid to gas) upon impact
with the surface being cleaned, which
means no secondary waste, no residue
and no moisture is generated. This
eliminates the added costs of extra
cleanup, disposing of secondary waste
streams and additional cleaning
preparation, such as masking delicate
sensors or wrapping electronic
components prior to cleaning.
The cleaning process does not use
water, which allows equipment to be
cleaned while online and still operating.
Because it is non-conductive, dry ice
cleaning allows for electrical equipment
to be safely cleaned.
Dry ice is a very soft media and can
clean sensitive electronic equipment,
such as printed circuit boards,
without etching, profiling or changing
surface dimensions.
Non-toxic
Dry ice is a food grade media and
is EPA, FDA and USDA approved for
use around food manufacturing. It is
colorless, tasteless, odorless and nontoxic.
It allows for the elimination of
environmentally harmful cleaning
chemicals and eliminates worker
exposure to hazardous cleaning agents.
It also does not produce any toxic waste
that requires disposal.
Cold Jet is a leader in developing
innovative, environmentally responsible
dry ice cleaning solutions and dry ice
production equipment and is the only
dry ice cleaning machine manufacturer
that offers the patented shaved dry ice
technology for dry ice MicroParticles.
Dry ice MicroParticles can clean areas in
which conventional 3-millimeter dry ice
pellets are unable to reach and reduce
the risk of damage to surfaces. There is
less noise when compared to pellets or
fragmented pellets, leading to a better
working environment and increased
worker safety. MicroParticles also
significantly reduce the consumption
of dry ice and compressed air because
less power and pressure (kinetic energy)
are needed in the acceleration process.
Tyson Marlowe is the Global Strategic
Business Unit Director, Food & Beverage
Processing & Packaging at Cold Jet.
PRODUCE PROCESSING
23

January/February 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January/February 2020