Goscor’s Revolutionary Green ec-H2O™ Technology Explained  –  February 2011

Goscor Cleaning Equipment’s (GCE) award-winning Tennant ec-H2O™ technology, which converts plain tap water into an effective and efficient cleaning agent, has been a significant advance in  ‘green’ industrial cleaning  given the combination of its extraordinary effectiveness as a cleaning agent and its significant environmental friendliness.

GCE MD Ricky Bodmer says that with industry becoming more aware of the negative environmental and health ramifications associated with chemical use, there has been a quest for new solutions that achieve optimal cleaning results without the adverse side effects associated with chemical use.

“Ec-H2O™ is one of the most successful solutions yet,” says Bodmer.

The Development of ec-H2O™

Water
While water has long been recognized as the ideal cleaning medium, safe for both humans and the environment, in its natural form it does not contain effective cleaning properties compared with when surface-cleaning agents (surfactants) are added to it.  When applied to a surface, water on its own, tends to maintain its droplet form rather than distributing evenly across surfaces.
 
Chemicals
When surfactants are dissolved in water, the surface tension is reduced facilitating an enhanced wetting effect enabling the spread of the solution across the cleaning surface and the penetration of the dirt and its lifting from the surface. But these chemical have their disadvantages when it comes to the environment.

Electrolysis
Water-electrolysis is an age-old technology that has been used in many applications as a cleaning agent. Up until now this process has typically generated two species (streams) of water: alkaline and acidic. These streams must remain separate in order to prevent them from naturally recombining into normal tap water with each stream providing a unique set of uses and benefits, although not every application requires the use of both streams. As a  result, in most applications, there is a waste-stream created during electrolysis that is simply disposed.

ec-H2O™
The revolutionary ECH20 technology is a result of new and radical improvements to simple water electrolysis described above.  The key is that ec-H2O™ allows the two streams of water – alkaline and acid – to combine and remain independently active for 45 seconds. This creates a powerful cleaning agent before recombining into normal tap water.

This has not only vastly improved the cleaning properties of water but it is also a far more environmentally friendly method of cleaning.  With no chemicals added, the water remains uncontaminated.

It is important to note, however, that there are some applications where the use of chemicals is still necessary but, in these cases, ec-H2O™ can be applied during rinse cycles, which are crucial in removing chemical residue build-up. The significant advantage is that the rinse cycles also act as cleaning cycles as, even though there are no chemicals, ec-H2O™ cleaning is taking place.

So, even when chemicals must be used, the ec-H2O™ process reduces re-soiling, extends the periods between cleaning, saves chemicals costs and reduces the impact on the environment.

Awards
ec-H2O™ is the recipient of many awards over the years including the ISSA Innovation Award, R&D Magazine Top 100 Award, Australia Business Award for Best Eco-friendly Product, the European Business Award for Innovation and the Sustainable industries- Green Building Products Top 10 Award.

For more information please contact Goscor Cleaning Equipment on 011 393 1413