Section 250-RICR-120-05-36.5 - DefinitionsA. Unless otherwise expressly defined in this section, the terms used in this Regulation shall be defined by reference to Part 0 of this Subchapter, General Definitions Regulation. As used in this Regulation, the following terms shall, where the context permits, be construed as follows:1. "Air blanket" means the layer of air inside the solvent cleaning machine freeboard located above the solvent/air interface. The centerline of the air blanket is equidistant between the sides of the machine.2. "As-applied VOC content" means the VOC content of a cleaning solvent at the time of use, including any solvent, catalyst or other substance added to the as-supplied cleaning solvent. "As-applied VOC content" is determined using an EPA reference method, a California Air Resources Board reference method or other method approved by the Director and EPA.3. "Automated parts handling system" means a mechanical device that carries all parts and parts baskets through the cleaning cycle at a controlled speed from the initial loading of contaminated or wet parts cold cleaning through the removal of the cleaned or dried parts. Automated parts handling systems include, but are not limited to, hoists and conveyors.4. "Batch cleaning" means the process in which individual parts or a set of parts move through an entire cleaning cycle before new parts are introduced into the solvent cleaning machine.5. "Capture efficiency" means the ratio of VOC emissions delivered to the control device to the total VOC emissions resulting from industrial solvent cleaning, expressed as a percentage.6. "Carbon adsorber" means a bed of activated carbon which adsorbs solvent from an air-solvent gas-vapor stream.7. "Clean liquid solvent" means fresh unused solvent, recycled solvent, or used solvent that has been cleaned of contaminants (e.g., skimmed of oils or sludge and strained of metal chips).8. "Cleaning activity" means the use of solvents to remove contaminants including, but not limited to, adhesives, inks, paint, dirt, soil, oil, and grease from parts, products, tools, machinery, equipment, vessels, and work production related areas for a variety of reasons, including safety, operability, and to avoid product contamination; this includes activities such as wiping, flushing, or spraying. Examples of such activities may include, but are not limited to, the cleaning of spray booths, spray guns, and printing presses.9. "Cleaning capacity" means, for a cleaning machine without a solvent/air interface, the maximum volume of parts that can be cleaned at one time. In most cases, the cleaning capacity is equal to the volume (length x width x height) of the cleaning chamber.10. "Cleaning solvent" means any VOC-containing liquid, including a liquid impregnated wipe or towelette, used in cleaning.11. "Cold cleaning" means an organic solvent cleaning process which cleans and removes contaminants or water from surfaces by spraying, brushing, flushing, immersing, or drying parts. Cleaning machines that use heated, nonboiling solvent to clean the parts are classified as cold solvent cleaning machines. Wipe cleaning is not included in this definition.12. "Consumption" means the amount of solvent added to the solvent cleaning machine.13. "Contaminants" means contaminants or soils that are removed from the parts being cleaned which include, but are not limited to, grease, oils, waxes, metal chips, carbon deposits, fluxes, and tars.14. "Control device efficiency" means the ratio of VOC emissions recovered or destroyed by the control device to the total VOC emissions that are introduced into the device, expressed as a percentage.15. "Cover" means a lid, top, or portal cover that shields the solvent cleaning machine openings from air disturbances when in place and is designed to be easily opened and closed without disturbing the vapor zone. Air disturbances include, but are not limited to, lip exhaust, ventilation fans, and general room drafts. Types of covers include, but are not limited to, sliding, bi-parting, and rolltop covers.16. "Dwell" means the technique of holding parts within the freeboard zone but above the vapor zone of the solvent cleaning machine. Dwell is used after cleaning to allow solvent to drain from parts or parts baskets back into the solvent cleaning machine.17. "Dwell time" means the amount of time that a part dwells in the freeboard zone of the solvent cleaning machine.18. "Emission" means the release or discharge, directly or indirectly, of one (1) or more air pollutants into the air.19. "Freeboard height" means; for a batch cleaning machine, the distance from the solvent/air interface, measured during the idling mode, to the top of the cleaning machine; for an in-line cleaning machine, it is the distance from the solvent/air interface to the bottom of the entrance or exit opening, whichever is lower, as measured during the idling mode.20. "Freeboard ratio" means the freeboard height divided by the width of the smaller interior dimension of the organic solvent cleaning machine.21. "Freeboard zone" means; for a batch cleaning machine, the zone within the solvent cleaning machine that extends from the solvent/air interface to the top of the solvent cleaning machine; for an in-line cleaning machine, it is the zone within the solvent cleaning machine that extends from the solvent/air interface to the bottom of the entrance or exit opening, whichever is lower.22. "Halogenated hazardous air pollutant solvent" or "halogenated HAP solvent" means trichloroethylene (CAS No. 79-01-6), perchloroethylene (CAS No. 127-18-4), 1,1,1-trichloroethane (CAS No. 71-55-6), methylene chloride (CAS No. 75-09-2), chloroform (CAS No. 67-66-3), or carbon tetrachloride (CAS No. 56.23-5).23. "Hazardous air pollutant" means any pollutant which has been listed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 7412(b) (CAA § 112(b)) or which is listed in Part 22 of this Subchapter, Air Pollution Control Regulation No. 22 - Air Toxics.24. "High precision products" means products for which contamination must be minimized in accordance with a customer or other specification including but not limited to: a. Products for use in extreme environments;b. Products covered by rigorous military or commercial specifications that require extremely accurate, and quality controlled manufacturing and;c. Products with quality standards that do not allow for potential excess contamination.25. "Hoist" means a mechanical device that carries the parts basket and the parts to be cleaned from the loading area into the solvent cleaning machine and to the unloading area at a controlled speed. A hoist may be operated by controls or may be programmed to cycle parts through the cleaning cycle automatically.26. "Idling mode" means the time period when a solvent cleaning machine is not actively cleaning parts and the sump heating coils, if present, are turned on.27. "In-line cleaning" means an organic solvent cleaning machine that uses an automated parts handling system, typically a conveyor, to automatically provide a continuous supply of parts to be cleaned. These units are fully enclosed except for the conveyor inlet and exit openings. In-line cleaning machines can be either cold or vapor cleaning machines.28. "Industrial solvent cleaning" means the use of cleaning solvent to remove uncured adhesives, uncured inks, uncured coatings, or contaminants such as dirt, soil or grease from parts, products, tools, machinery, equipment, or work areas, where such parts, products, tools, machinery, equipment, and work areas are incorporated into or used exclusively in manufacturing a product. a. Industrial solvent cleaning includes, but is not limited to: Spray gun cleaning, spray booth cleaning, cleaning of manufactured components, parts cleaning, cleaning of production equipment for maintenance or to prohibit cross-contamination, and cleaning of tanks, mixing pots, process vessels and lines.
b. Industrial solvent cleaning does not include:(1) The cleaning of personal protection equipment, such as respirators.(2) Solvent cleaning machines as defined in § 36.5(A)(40) of this Part. 29. "Janitorial cleaning" means general and maintenance cleaning of building or facility components including, but not limited to, floors, ceilings, walls, windows, doors, stairs, restrooms, furnishings, kitchens, and exterior surfaces of office equipment. "Janitorial cleaning" includes graffiti removal.a. Janitorial cleaning does not include: (1) The cleaning of parts, products, or equipment, where such parts, products or equipment are incorporated into or used exclusively in manufacturing a product.(2) The cleaning of work areas, such as laboratory benches, where manufacturing or repair activity is performed.30. "Leakproof coupling" means a threaded or other type of coupling that prevents solvents from leaking while filling or draining solvent to and from the solvent cleaning machine.31. "Lip exhaust" means a device installed at the top of the opening of a solvent cleaning machine that draws air and solvent vapor from the freeboard zone and removes the air and vapor from the solvent cleaning area.32. "Medical device" means an instrument, apparatus, implement, machine, gadget, appliance, implant, in vitro reagent or other similar or related article, including any component, part, or accessory, which meets one (1) of the following conditions: a. Recognized in the official National Formulary or the United States Pharmacopeia or any supplement thereto,b. Intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other conditions or in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, in persons or animals, orc. Intended to affect the structure or function of the body of a person or animal, and which does not achieve its primary intended purposes through chemical action within or on such body and which is not dependent upon being metabolized for the achievement of its primary intended purposes.33. "Open top area" means the solvent/air interface area which is open to the atmosphere during operations.34. "Organic solvent cleaning" means the process of cleaning contaminants or water from surfaces by cold cleaning or vapor cleaning using Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) or volatile Hazardous Air Pollutants.35. "Overall control efficiency" means the efficiency of a control system, calculated as the product of the capture efficiency and the control device efficiency, expressed as a percentage.36. "Part" means any object that is cleaned in the solvent cleaning machine. Parts include, but are not limited to, discrete parts, assemblies, or sets of parts.37. "Primary condenser" means a series of cooling coils on a vapor cleaning machine through which a chilled substance is circulated to provide continuous condensation of rising solvent vapors and, thereby, create a concentrated solvent vapor zone.38. "Refrigerated freeboard chiller" means a control device mounted above the primary condenser coils consisting of secondary coils which carry a refrigerant to provide a chilled air blanket above the solvent vapor to reduce emissions from the solvent cleaning machine.39. "Remote-reservoir cold cleaning" means cold cleaning using equipment which pumps liquid solvent to a sink-like work area and then drains the solvent back into an enclosed container while parts are being cleaned, allowing no solvent to pool in the work area.40. "Screen printing" means a method of creating an image by pressing ink through a screen or fabric to which a stencil has been applied and where the stencil openings determine the form and dimensions of the image.41. "Soils" means contaminants that are removed from the parts being cleaned. Soils include, but are not limited to, grease, oils, waxes, metal chips, carbon deposits, fluxes, and tars.42. "Solvent/air interface" means, for a vapor cleaning machine, the location of contact between the concentrated solvent vapor layer and the air. If this location cannot be determined, it is assumed to be at the mid-line height of the primary condenser coils. For a cold solvent cleaning machine, it is the location of contact between the liquid solvent and the air.43. "Solvent/air interface area" means for a vapor cleaning machine, the surface area of the solvent vapor zone that is exposed to the air; for an inline cleaning machine, it is the total surface area of all the sumps; for a cold cleaning machine, it is the surface area of the liquid solvent that is exposed to the air.44. "Solvent cleaning machine" means any device or piece of equipment that uses solvent liquid or vapor to remove contaminants from the surfaces of materials. Types of solvent cleaning machines include, but are not limited to, batch vapor, in-line vapor, in-line cold, and batch cold solvent cleaning machines.45. "Solvent vapor zone" means; for a vapor cleaning machine, the zone that extends from the liquid solvent surface to the level that solvent vapor is condensed. This condensation level is defined as the midline height of the primary condenser coils.46. "Special and extreme solvent metal cleaning" means the use of a cold solvent cleaning machine to clean metal parts where such metal parts are used in any of the following applications: a. Research, development, manufacture and rework of electronic parts, assemblies, boxes, wiring harnesses, sensors and connectors used in aerospace service; orb. Research, development, manufacture, and rework of high precision products for which contamination must be minimized in accordance with a customer or other specification.47. "Sump" means the part of a solvent cleaning machine where the liquid solvent is located.48. "Sump heater" or "sump heater coils" means the heating system on a cleaning machine that uses steam, electricity, or hot water to heat or boil the liquid solvent.49. "Superheated vapor system" means a system that heats solvent vapor to a temperature above the solvent's boiling point. Parts are held (dwell) in the superheated vapor to evaporate the liquid solvent on them before exiting the machine. Hot vapor recycle is an example of a superheated vapor system.50. "Vapor cleaning" means a batch or in-line solvent cleaning machine that boils liquid solvent generating solvent vapor that is used as a part of the cleaning or drying cycle.51. "Volatile Organic Compound" or "VOC" means "Volatile Organic Compounds and Halogenated Organic Compounds" or "VOC" and "HOC".52. "Working mode" means the time period when the solvent cleaning machine is actively cleaning parts.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-120-05-36.5
Adopted effective 1/13/2019
Amended effective 6/13/2022