Wednesday, July 02, 2008

The word "Witty" was derived before the 12Th century. It's Archaic: Having good intellectual capacity (INTELLIGENT). With this being said, everybody uses wipes,right? From a mother to wipe messy hands and the faces of her children to our Scientists who must take special care of their laboratory equipment. Some of us have forgotten the complex technology embedded in these inexpensive and reliable cleaning tools. In General there are three categories of wipes: Wipes made of woven or knitted cloth, paper wipes, and wipes made of non-woven synthetic cloth. Here are some things to consider when deciding on which wipes are the ones are the best for your specific application. The most obvious criteria is the absorbency of the wipe. Most of us forget that absorbency will vary by contamination. Some wipes will not absorb water, while others work better on solvents and lacquers. Understanding your application is crucial to a successful selection process. The second criteria is cleanliness; meaning the contamination caused by the wipe itself. Cleanliness is related to absorbency. Balancing the incompatibilities can be a challenge. The cleanest wipe is porous and will not absorb as much contamination, while more absorbent materials may be more sensitive and leave more residue and fibers. The ULTIMATE criteria concerns the packaging. Many wipes come in a very inexpensive unclean cardboard. Electronics grade wipes are packaged in a static-free packaging that avoids damage to circuit boards and avoids attracting dust while in transit. Almost all cleanroom environments require "double packaging". There are many packaging choices, so you should consider what your needs and your budget are before making your selection. You should also check the packaging and the packaging material in the packaging process. Semiconductor companies expect the packaging to be as contaminant free as the wipes themselves. The packaging must not contain, plasticizers, silicones, or ionics that may cross-contaminate the cleanroom. For this type of environment, it is critical that the wipes be cut, counted, and packaged in a cleanroom environment. If this process is not followed, then the wipes become expensive, double packaged dirt. The very last criteria is the cost, which must be evaluated. You may want to look at a wipe that can be used several times, such as a fabric wipe which is more absorptive, stronger and more durable. In the long run they may be more expensive to purchase, but because they can be used multiple times they are generally a less expensive alternative.