De-bonding and Removal of Wax from Glass
Slides using SP2200 Alkaline Detergent

I. Purpose

The purpose of this test was to evaluate the efficiency of de-bonding and removal of Stickum #170 and Parafflex-4661 waxes from glass slides by soaking and ultrasonic cleaning using VALTRON^® SP2200.

II. Parameters of the Experiment

1. Conditioning of the Substrates:
   Samples of Stickum #170 and Parafflex-4661 waxes were submitted for evaluation. Several glass microscope slides were conditioned with either the Stickum #170 or the Parafflex-4661 wax by melting the wax onto a glass microscope slide and bonding it to another glass slide.
2. Determination of Melting Points:
   The melting point of the Stickum #170 wax is 167°F/75°C and the melting point of Parafflex-4661 is 129°F/54°C.  Melting points were determined by heating glass slides conditioned with each wax in deionized water until they began to melt.
3. Preparation of the Detergent Solutions:
   Immersion Soak Cleaning:
   2% VALTRON^® SP2200 alkaline detergent
   200mL of the above detergent solution was prepared in a 250mL beaker and heated to and maintained at 158°F/70°C to 176°F/80°C.
   
   Ultrasonic Cleaning:
    2% VALTRON^® SP2200 alkaline detergent 200mL of the above solution was prepared in a 250mL stainless steel beaker.  The detergent was degassed for 15 minutes at a temperature of 158°F/70°C to 176°F/80°C in a Blackstone Ney^® ultrasonic unit operating at 40 kHz and 100% power.                                                                     

III. The Experiment

Immersion Soak Cleaning:

1. 200mL of 2% VALTRON^® SP2200 was prepared in a 250mL beaker and heated to and maintained at 176°F/80°C.
2. Glass slides bonded with Stickum #170 wax were placed in the detergent solution and soaked for 20 minutes.
3. The epoxy was allowed to cure for 24 hours at room temperature.
4. The glass slides were allowed to air dry, and then examined under a high-intensity light source for any remaining wax residue.
5. Steps 1-4 were repeated with glass slides bonded with Parafflex-4661 wax with soak temperatures of 158°F/70°C and 176°F/80°C and a soak time of 5 to 20 minutes.
6. The results are summarized in Table 1.

Ultrasonic Cleaning:

1. 200mL of 2% VALTRON^® SP2200 were prepared in a 250mL stainless steel beaker. The beaker was placed into a Blackstone Ney^® ultrasonic unit operating at 40 kHz and 100% power, and degassed for 15 minutes at 176°F/80°C.
2. Glass slides bonded with Stickum #170 were placed in the detergent solution and ultrasonically washed for 5 minutes.
3. The glass slides were removed from the ultrasonic wash tank, and given a 15-second spray rinse of low-pressure deionized water at room temperature.
4. Next, the glass slides were placed in deionized water and ultrasonically rinsed for 5 minutes at 176°F/80°C.
5. The glass slides were removed from the ultrasonic rinse tank, and given a 15-second spray rinse of low-pressure deionized water at room temperature.
6. Then, the glass slides were allowed to air dry, and they were examined under a high-intensity light source for any remaining wax residue.
7. Steps 1-6 were repeated with glass slides bonded with Parafflex-4661 at 158°F/70°C and 176°F/80°C.
8. The results are summarized in Table 2.

IV. Results

Table 1: Soaking of Glass Slides Bonded with Wax

Table 2: Ultrasonic Removal of Wax from Glass Slides

V. Conclusion

In this experiment, soaking was not an effective method of de-bonding and removing the wax from the glass slides. At 176°F/80°C, the ultrasonic cleaning of the glass slides bonded with either Stickum #170 or Parafflex-4661 waxes resulted in de-bonding and complete removal of the waxes using 2% solution of VALTRON^® SP2200.

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