[lenjul]

I'm new with this website, so please bear with me if I am posting to the wrong forum.  I'm working with a pulp molding machine to produce paper molded products.  Paper (mainly newspapers) is dissolved in water to form a slush which is then pressed (by way of vacuum) on to a stainless steel screen mold.  Water is extracted through the screen by a vacuum.  After years of use, the screen mold has accumulated pulp that cannot be taken off by manual means (i.e. brushing, pressure pump, compressed air, detergent, soaking in water).  What solvents could I use to get this pulp out?  Is there anything out there that can dissolve the pulp but not harm stainless steel?  Any help would be appreciated...

[Nicolas88]

try to wash it with kerosene and brush it ..it might work but it wont harm the steel for sure.
if it didnt work:
dip it in one of these solutions:
-conc HCl for 1-4 min at room temperature.
-(NaOH+Na₂CO₃+Na₆Si₃O₉)for 2-10 min at 60-80 C
-conc HCl + conc H₂SO₄+ conc HNO₃ for 1-2 seconds at room temperature.

[lenjul]

Thanks Nicolas, will give it a try

[chronictonic]

conc. HCl + conc H2SO4  ----> HCl gas which will burn your lung right out of your chest....do it outside. or just use one of the above mentioned acids.