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Media routing on the long side of a parts cleaning system: two riser pipes carry green labels reading “Spülen I” and “Spülen II” (rinsing I and II), the horizontal pipe below is marked “Frischwasser” (fresh water); in between shut-off valves, a pressure gauge and the locking levers of the maintenance hatches

A clean but damp component is not finished.

Drying

Drying stands at the end of the process — and is underestimated for exactly that reason. How dry the component has to be is determined not by the system but by the step that follows.
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1 · The challenge

Drying stands at the end — and is underestimated for that reason

Yet it co-decides what arrives at the component: residual moisture in blind holes and bores, spots from residues drying on, corrosion on bare surfaces.

How dry the component has to be is determined not by the system but by the step that follows: if it is bonded, coated, painted or assembled, that changes the requirement fundamentally.

2 · Engineering considerations

A design parameter of its own, not an ingredient at the end

Drying is the third fixed step in the basic process — extended depending on the project by a second rinsing, a second drying or an air blow-off, plus additional stations, pumps and tanks.
  1. 01Cleaning
  2. 02Rinsing
  3. 03Drying
  4. 04Second rinsing or dryingje nach Auslegung
  5. 05Air blow-offje nach Auslegung

The drying requirement goes into the decision together with part geometry, residual contamination requirement and cycle time — and it is closely linked to the water quality: where freedom from residues is required, it co-decides whether city water, softened water or deionized water (DI water) is used.

How much liquid gets into the drying at all is decided beforehand — at the workpiece fixture. A component with blind holes that lies horizontally on the workpiece carrier cannot drain: the water stays standing in the bore and goes entirely into the drying. A different fixture — tilted or rotated — changes exactly that. The amount of liquid is therefore not an input value but a result of geometry and position. That makes the workpiece fixture part of the drying design just like cycle time and residual contamination requirement.

Technical Cleanliness and Residual Contamination
Vacuum chamber of a parts cleaning system in the hall: above the chamber the superstructure with the exhaust, in the transfer opening a cast housing on the workpiece carrier, in front of it the conveying with emergency stop buttons
Every process stage needs installation space and peripherals: above the chamber the superstructure with the exhaust, in front of it the transfer with the component on the workpiece carrier.
Batch by batch through the chamber: mesh baskets with plastic boxes on the material flow and conveying, the cast parts on top.9 seconds

3 · Vacuum drying as an option

An option, not a method of its own

It is used for increased drying requirements and very high residual contamination requirements — where conventional drying would leave residual moisture in bores and blind holes.

Whether it is needed in the specific case is decided by the system design — there is no blanket rule.

4 · Where drying is used

Part of practically every parts cleaning system

From the chamber cleaning system via the continuous cleaning system to the immersion cleaning system. In water jet deburring, by contrast, drying is not part of the standard scope of supply: where the component has to continue dry, it is integrated project-specifically.
Chamber Cleaning SystemsContinuous Cleaning SystemsImmersion Cleaning SystemsHigh-Precision Water Jet DeburringCleaning Methods

Questions and answers

Frequently asked questions about drying

Why do components have to be dried after cleaning?

A clean but damp component is not finished. Residual moisture in blind holes and bores, spots from residues drying on, corrosion on bare surfaces — drying stands at the end and is underestimated for exactly that reason. How dry the part has to be is determined not by the system but by the step that follows.

Which drying methods are there?

Drying stages are part of practically every parts cleaning system — from the chamber cleaning system via the continuous cleaning system to the immersion cleaning system. Besides conventional drying, air blow-off and vacuum drying are available, depending on the project also a second drying. Which combination carries is decided by the system design.

When is vacuum drying needed?

For increased drying requirements and very high residual contamination requirements — where conventional drying would leave residual moisture in bores and blind holes. Vacuum drying is an option, not a method of its own. Whether it is needed in the specific case is decided by the system design; there is no blanket rule.

How are blind holes and internal bores dried?

Blind holes and bores are the critical case — residual moisture stays standing where conventional drying does not reach. For high requirements, vacuum drying is the answer to that. That is why the drying requirement is a design parameter of its own and not an ingredient at the end: it goes into the decision together with part geometry, residual contamination requirement and cycle time.

What does drying have to do with water quality?

More than you would expect. Where freedom from residues is required, the water quality co-decides whether spots remain after drying — city water, softened water and deionized water (DI water) leave different amounts behind. Drying requirement and water quality are therefore designed together, not one after the other.

Why are my components still wet after washing?

Because the drying is not designed for your geometry and the position of the component. Bores and blind holes place the highest demands — residual moisture stays standing there. How much liquid gets into the drying at all is decided at the workpiece fixture: a part with blind holes that lies horizontally on the workpiece carrier cannot drain. For high requirements, vacuum drying is the option that does not replace conventional drying but supplements it.

Applications

Components on which this method is decided

5 worked-out tasks name drying as a possible method. What tips the balance in each of them is on its own page.

Each case sets out the design factors, the possible system concepts and the methods in detail — here you only find what it is about.

Cross-drilled holes and blind holes

Blind holes and cross-drilled holes are exactly the places a spray jet does not reach: it hits what it sees.

Crankshaft

A crankshaft is long, sensitive to imbalance and has hard-to-reach bores — and that is exactly where oil, cooling lubricant and chips from machining sit.

High technical cleanliness

It is not cleanliness itself that is difficult, but its verification: a component that is clean, but not demonstrably clean, cannot be used in a manufacturing operation with a verification requirement.

Defined part temperature

The component is clean and dry — and still not ready for handover: a part that is too warm is of no use for a leak test.

Also with drying as a possible method: Multi-stage cleaning process

None of these cases inevitably leads to drying. Which method it becomes arises from the interplay of the design factors — the method is the result of the system design, not its starting point.

All applications

Direct contact

AddressITR GmbH powered by Zippel
Hauptstraße 31
93186 Pettendorf
Pettendorf bei Regensburg
Phone+49 (0) 9409-777 3598
Fax +49 (0) 9409-777 3607
Emailinfo@itr-anlagenbau.com