Q: Can you suggest the best process or processes that will give us the capabilities to meet as many customer requirements as possible? Anodizing expert Larry Chesterfield answers this question.
Q. Our customer sent us some of its anodized aluminum extrusion samples that were exhibiting a condition that looked like small snowflakes all over the part. Is this is a metal condition, or something wrong in the anodizing process?
Q. What should be the maximum aluminum content in an alkaline etching bath to avoid galvanized appearance (spangling) when preparing 6063 T6 extrusions for Type II anodizing?
Q. Can distilled water be substituted for deionized water? Our facility can create a distilled water heated bath fairly easily because we already produce distilled water for another process. A DI water bath would be much more expensive.
Q. In conversations with our anodizer on the best way to seal parts for adhesion prior to painting, he referred to a choice of either a final hot water immersion at around 120°F with no seal or a hot water seal at a much higher temperature. What is the difference between the two options and which one do you think is more advantageous for paint adhesion?
Q. Recently, a company asked us to match its samples so we could do work for them. According to our method, we matched the samples, but they were rejected when they were sent to the company. We were told the samples were out of tolerance. We discovered the company used a different brand colorimeter with a different color scale to measure the color. Is there a set standard in the anodizing industry for measuring and matching colors?
Q. We have recently run into a surface condition when hard anodizing 7075 machined forgings. It seems to be present primarily on the end of the part, even down into the hole. Both of these areas are machined. The condition does not appear to be evident on other surfaces. I have not seen this condition before, but it appears to me to be rather unique and something recognizable.
Q. I sent you photos of two parts that are alloy 7050 forgings. On these parts there are spots that appeared as a result of Type III (hardcoat) anodizing that were not present before anodizing. They look like corrosion of some sort, but the corrosion looks a little different on each part. What causes these spots to appear and what measures can be taken to prevent or eliminate them after they occur?