Electroplating
Cobalt-Free Technology for Trivalent Chromates on Zinc Plating
Corrosion and appearance requirements for plated steel parts continue to increase, while at the same time ever more restrictive environmental regulations are being put into place. As if these hurdles are not challenging enough for both process suppliers and applicators, there exists the compelling directive to reduce costs. Much of this is initially introduced by the European automotive industry, but then quickly spreads to automakers worldwide and to most other industries. In the field of zinc plating, the focus is on the protective conversion coatings and top coats that are applied to the zinc deposit. This paper examines the advantages of new cobalt-free technology as well as what is on the horizon regarding future requirements and regulations for zinc plating.
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PCX PREVIEW: Precision Cleaning
In the finishing world, there are four common precision cleaning processes: hydrocarbon, aqueous, semi-aqueous, and vapor degreasing. Each has its strengths and disadvantages, but one of the biggest problems with aqueous and semi-aqueous cleaning is the quantity of electricity they take.
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Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown
As NASF members get ready to travel to the Capital to attend the Washington Forum conference in April, one person they may keep an eye out for is U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who knows about the damage that offshoring can cause.
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Antimicrobial coatings: Billion Dollar Bugs
Antimicrobial coatings are starting to make an even bigger entry into U.S. homes. More consumer goods manufacturers are offering “germ resistant” surfaces on many household items such as refrigerators, dishwashers, stoves and other appliances and fixtures. A report by Global Industry Analysts Inc. says the U.S. antimicrobial coatings market alone is expected to reach $1 billion by 2015.
Read MoreShadow Plating
On some of our parts, we see what appears to be a “shadow.” What causes this and how can we prevent this from happening?
Read MoreMore in Failure of Zinc Plating
In the December issue of Products Finishing, I addressed a question regarding the failure of zinc plating around welds. One of our readers emailed me and correctly pointed out that I only addressed the plating but failed to address the quality of the parts and welded areas.
Read MoreGetting a Good Finish Begins with a Great Start
Virtually all metal parts and many plastic parts have some sort of finish applied to them. These finishes are applied to improve appearance, increase corrosion resistance and enhance wear resistance.
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Smooth Operators: Attaining Isotropic finish through chemically accelerated vibration
It seems recently there has been more talk about the advantages of an isotropic, non-directional finish on machined surfaces obtained through a chemically accelerated vibratory process.
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Full Seminar on REACH & Nickel Compounds
Learn More About the Impacts of REACH Legislation from The Nickel Institute.
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