Operation; Start-Up; Air Adjustment; Bath Temperature - Cole Parmer FSB-200 Series Instruction Manual

5. Place the extraction collar (if used) into the bath.
6. Install and connect any associated fume treatment equipment with appropriate ducting and connect
to the fluidised bath extraction collar. See figure 2 above and section FUME CLEANING.

START-UP

1. Check that the unit has been set up as described in the previous section and that required services are
available.
2. Check that aluminium oxide level is correct and adjust if necessary. Never add new, cold aluminium
oxide (which may contain moisture) to a hot bath. Should the fluidised bath be stored for long periods
of time under damp or humid conditions, moisture may be absorbed by the aluminium oxide which is
hydroscopic. To avoid violent fluidisation which occurs when damp aluminium oxide is heated above
100°C, operate the bath for a period of approximately 8 hours at 90°C prior to operation at elevated
temperatures.
3. Turn on power and air to the unit. Following the instructions displayed on the label on the unit, set the
air flow to 4 CFM when at ambient temperature. When fluidised and bubbling make sure the
aluminium oxide level is still within 80-100mm of the top.
4. Place the extraction collar (if purchased) into the bath and place the lid on.

AIR ADJUSTMENT

5. Important: as the bath heats up you will need to adjust the airflow settings based on the front label
chart or the heat up time will greatly increase. See Table 1 below. The reverse needs to happen when
cooling down.
Indicated bath temperature
Temperature (°C)
Ambient to 50
50 to 100
100 to 200
200 to 300
300 to 400
400 to 500
500 to 600
Table 1: Air flow rate settings at indicated bath temperatures.

BATH TEMPERATURE

6. Set the controller to the required operating temperature. Once the controller has reached the set point,
allow 1 hour for the bath to fully stabilize before attempting to use it.
An initial temperature drop or quenching of the bath can occur after inserting a workpiece to be cleaned.
This temperature drop depends on the size of the immersed object, but is generally in the order of 25°C
(77°F). Carbon is burned to carbon dioxide quickly above 400°C (752°F). It may be found desirable to pre-
heat the bath to as high as 550°C (1020°F) to obtain quick results, but caution should be exercised not to
damage tools by overheating.

EXTRACTION AIR SETUP

If you use an exhaust hood for ventilation, please ignore this section.

OPERATION

Temperature (°F)
Ambient to 122
122 to 212
212 to 392
392 to 572
572 to 752
752 to 932
932 to 1112
20
Flow rate (CFM)
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.2
1.9
1.7
1.4