Wednesday 16 March 2016

What is hard chrome plating?

Did you ever want to know what hard chrome plating was?
Hard chrome plating is an electroplating process in which chromium is deposited from a chromic acid solution.
Hard Chrome Plating Birmingham
The thickness of hard chrome plating ranges from 2 - 250 micrometers.
A variety of hard chrome include micro-cracked chromium, micro-porous chromium, porous chromium and crack free chromium.
It is vital that the micro-cracked coatings and porous coatings have a minimum thickness between 80 - 120 micrometers in order confer adequate corrosion resistance.
The formation of micro-porous chromium is achieved by a specialised plating method involving the use of inactive suspended particles.
Porous chrome plating is manufactured by etching electro deposited chromium - these are designed to retain lubricant, for sliding type applications.
Chrome plating is used mostly for resistance against wear and corrosion as opposed to its low friction characteristics.
However, there are environmental concerns associated with disposing the plating solution, which has lead to many users of chrome plating to seek out alternative coating methods.
Visit Hard chrome plating Birmingham's page on our site for more about this and our polishing services.