I would always start off by asking the manufacturer what they recommend, and during the warranty period - stick to that religeously. Should you need to make a claim under warranty, they may have a valid "get out" if you have (involuntarily) abused the plates.
The IMAGETALK forum had a similar question recently , I have cut and pasted the best reply here
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You are safe with ethanol, anhydrous or not, as long as you get the job done quickly with as little as possible and with good ventilation. A long term application of ethanol will migrate into the mylar top film. The mylar has already absorbed water from air humidity.
It is my understanding that anhydrous ethanol is under different regulatory controls than 80% ethanol. The former can be officially labeled "poison" and "flammable" while the latter would require inventory lockup if not a liquor license. The vapors of either are intoxicating.
Keeping in mind that with all brands of image plates, the mylar layer is adhered with an adhesive, it's the adhesive layer that will soften and start delaminating, usually at the edges.
Ethanol is not perfect, it's just better than any other solvents in that it evaporates quickly and the toxicity is well known.
Water based detergents attack that adhesive and also remain in the mylar, softening it. But ethanol will react with phosphors, so chipped edges may start to discolor."
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also :
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Ethanol with no water is anhydrous ethanol
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As I said to my Xray department on the same matter :
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1. Using water to clean the plates f*cks them big time
2. The job needs to be done quickly
3. The job needs to be done in a WELL ventilated area
4. Don't SOAK the plates, a damp wipe seems to be the method of choice
From our standpoint, it re-inforces what I said earlier about using the recommended cleaning solutions and methods. Don't forget, not following the manufacturers cleaning instructions will invalidate any warranty claim.
Note also that the cleaner should PROBABLY be stored in a flameproof locker
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For those that are interested, IMAGETALK is a mailing forum aimed at x-ray engineers/service personnel. You subscribe by sending an e-mail containing "SUBSCRIBE imagetalk" to "majordomo@medicalparts.org". It is heavily american orientated but can be agreat source of vital snippets.
