Figure 3. Outer tube for industrial shock absorbers showing UltraOx.UltraOx is not only an environmentally friendly process but also allows for uniform all-over treatment of the steel component. Therefore, it is more versatile than hard chromium plating, so there is no shadowing effect from connecting electrodes. Parts of any geometry can be treated. Some of the parts treated by Advanced Heat Treat Corp. are also of significant size, such as piston rods for skid-steer loaders and other off-highway equipment. Other parts are quite small and detailed, such as the outer tube for an industrial shock absorber, Figure 3. Durability of the UltraOx layer is at least twice of the chromium plated coating. Many actual and potential applications of the process are in the field of hydraulics and pneumatics.
M. Woods, T. Damirgi and E. Rolinski, are with Advance Heat Treat Corp., Waterloo, Iowa. For more information, call (319) 232.5221 or visit www.ahtweb.com.
References:
1. EPA, Draft Toxicological Review of Hex Chromium: In Support of Summary Information on the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS). 75 Fed. Reg. 60454 (2010), www.phoneline.com, May 2011.
2. J. Spies, Chapter 6 in E. J. Mittemeijer and J. Somers, Thermochemical Surface Engineering of Steels, Ed Woodhead Publishing, 2014.
3. M. Woods, UltraOx Treatment, Trade Name, 2012.
4. M. L. Doche, V. Meynie, H. Mazille, C. Deramix and P. Jacquot, Improvements of the corrosion resistance of low-pressure nitrided and post-oxidized steels by a polymer impregnation final treatment, Surface and Coatings Technology, 154, (2002), pp. 113-123.
5. J. A. Segui, Simulation-Led Strategy for Corrosion Prevention, Corrosion/Materials Science, Comsol News, 2014, pp. 36A-38A.
6. K. R. Newby, Industrial (Hard) Chromium Plating, Metals Hanbook Vol. 5, Surface Engineering, Ed. ASM Intl. 1994, pp. 177-191.
7. Zhenkun Yang, Alternatives to hard chromium plating on piston rods.
8. M. Keshavarz Hedayat, Comparison of conventional and active screen plasma nitriding of hard chromium electroplated steel. Elsevier, 2009