Aluminum Electroplating Plating for High Strength Steels

High purity aluminum protects high strength and high strength low alloy (HSLA) steels

AlumiPlate® Aluminum is the preferred anti-corrosion coating for aerospace high strength and high strength low alloy steels.

High strength steels and high strength low alloy steels are used for critical aerospace components requiring high tensile strength, high toughness and excellent fatigue properties. These steels can be alloyed and heat treated to develop superior mechanical properties. However, they are prone to corrosion from the environment, aerospace fluids and even other mating materials. Aluminum electroplating for HSLA steels has demonstrated the highest possible corrosion protection without incurring a fatigue debit or impacting mechanical properties.

Aerospace steels, high strength titanium alloys and high strength stainless steels, are sensitive to hydrogen embrittlement. This condition increases the material’s ability to prevent crack initiation and growth. When under load, the condition is more insidious, known as stress corrosion cracking, and can lead to sudden, catastrophic and premature failure of a high strength component at much lower loads than expected. Testing by aerospace OEM’s and the Department of Defense (DoD) has documented a 20-year record of plated aluminum as a non-embrittling coating.

AlumiPlate® aluminum is the only aerospace sacrificial coating that combats hydrogen embrittlement (HE), re-embrittlement, environmentally induced cracking (EAC), and stress corrosion cracking (SCC).

• High purity aluminum provides unsurpassed barrier and sacrificial protection for 4130, 4330. 4340, 5XXX and 6XXX, M30, AerMet 100, 300M, and other aerospace high strength materials.
• A thin coating of electroplated aluminum withstands 500 hours of ASTM G85 sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and 2000+ hours of ASTM B-117 salt fog testing.
• Aerospace DoD and OEM testing confirms electroplated aluminum outperforms cadmium (Cd), zinc nickel (ZnNi), tin zinc (SnZn), ion vapor deposited aluminum (IVD Al), nickel (Ni), SermeTel (zinc and aluminum slurries) and zinc-aluminum coatings.
• The AlumiPlate aluminum coating is 100% RoHS/REACH/WEEE compliant and the preferred DoD cadmium and HAZMAT replacement.
• The aluminum plating process is non-aqueous eliminating hydrogen embrittlement and re-embrittlement concerns of cadmium and cadmium replacement coatings.
• The aluminum coating is ideal for high strength steel applications exposed to severe environments. Landing gear, actuator, fasteners, pins and other flight safety critical components can benefit from plated aluminum high corrosion performance.
• Electrodeposited aluminum can be used as a complimentary coating for high strength parts that require wear resistant high velocity oxyfuel thermal spray hard chrome replacement coatings (for example HVOF Tungsten Carbide or Tungsten Cobalt Carbide).
• Aluminum plating is excellent for high carbon spring steels 1050, 1060, 1075, 1080, 1090 and specialty spring steel grades. The coating is ductile with excellent adhesion and no propensity for embrittlement.

Contact us to discuss how electroplated aluminum can protect high strength steels and help you migrate from hazardous coatings, such as cadmium.