Dry Ice Blasting & Cleaning Blog

Dry Ice Blasting for Power Plant Electrical Components

Some of the most challenging cleaning jobs in a power generation facilities are the smallest.

When dust and grime collect around the most delicate electrical equipment, like control panels and circuit boards, some plant operators turn to tedious and time-consuming hand cleaning.

Others may put off the cleaning of breakers, motor windings, and switch gears because of the risk of damage. But delay carries its own risk of damage as accumulated dirt and debris can lead to equipment damage, shorts and even fire.

Powerful, Adaptive & Water-Free Cleaning for Power Plants

That’s why many power plant operators come to rely on dry ice blasting, which has the unique ability to blast away stubborn debris and coatings but can also be applied with a feather-like dusting safe enough for the most delicate equipment. Such adaptability makes it equally effective at blasting away encrusted debris like bird waste that accumulates on exposed substation surfaces.

Dry ice blasting is also effective for the big jobs in a power plant, like cleaning of generator cores, gas turbines, HRSGs, and SCRs.

Dry ice blasting is a water-free process and its non-abrasive, non-flammable, and non-conducive spray of CO2 ice pellets that sublimate on contact, leaving behind no secondary waste or chemicals.

Dry ice blasting also reduces downtime. Unlike chemical abrasive or water-blasting methods, dry-ice cleaning is fast, so downtime can be scheduled for a part of a day rather than several days. Depending on the application, different sized ice pellets can be used, from rice-sized to nuggets, or even shaved block ice.

The Advantages of Dry Ice for Power Plant Cleaning

Dry ice blasting provides a wide range of advantages for power plants:

  • Improved megohm readings
  • Increased polarization indices
  • Elimination of wear and tear
  • Reduced cleaning time and production-line disruption
  • Reduced risk of catastrophic failure
  • Improved thermal dissipation
  • Clean in place; no cool down required
  • Does not require full disassembly of parts
  • Increased productivity
  • Specialized nozzles enable cleaning of crevices, heights and other hard-to-reach areas
  • Environmentally safe, chemical-free and water-free process

The Advantage of Polar Clean for Your Power Plant Cleaning Challenges

The Polar Clean team has deep expertise and a wide range of solutions for the most challenging commercial and industrial cleaning applications.

Our work is trusted by operators of power plants, petrochemical facilities, food and pharmaceutical manufacturing plants and facilities undergoing restoration or delicate historic renovations.

We conduct extensive assessments to determine the safest and most effective solutions for every job. The Polar Clean team is well-trained and certified for a wide range of work, including at heights, confined spaces, and jobs requiring the use of respiratory equipment. Our equipment includes proprietary nozzles designed to enable cleaning in a wide variety of hard-to-reach and delicate spaces.

To learn more about how dry ice blasting can solve your industrial and commercial cleaning challenges, as well as help you reach your goals around sustainability initiatives to reduce the use of water and chemicals, reach out to our team for an assessment.

Contact us to learn more about dry ice blasting for power plants