Design of Pipe Nozzle System and Water Regulation in Automatic Bike Washing Unit

Abstract

Cleaning with high pressure waterjet has proven to be a viable alternative to the use of solvents. A popular method of waterjet cleaning involves the use of a rotating, multijet, high pressure water nozzle which is manually and robotically controlled. This method enables rapid cleaning of a large area, but problems such as incomplete coverage and damage to the substrate from the waterjet have been observed. This report summarizes research consisting of identifying and investigating the basic properties of rotating, multijet, high pressure water nozzles, and how particular designs and modes of operation affect such things as stripping rate, standoff distance and completeness of surface. The objective of this tests is to determine the water distribution characteristics of two different water spray systems one with high pressure for water and another with low pressure for foam and a high-pressure water mist system for bike washing. The results indicate that a reasonably uniform distribution of water was achieved when the vertical distance from the top of a trailer to the tips of the nozzles was 650 mm When this vertical distance was reduced to 250 mm, the distribution was rather non-uniform over the area between the nozzles.