How to ensure electroplating quality
Electroplating is a very critical step in the production of safety razors, which directly determines the appearance of the product. Today we mainly share:
- Process flow/parameters of electroplating;
- Main electroplating defects;
- How to detect electroplating parts;
- Colors that can be done by electroplating.
Process flow/parameters of electroplating. Let’s have a quick warming by this flow chart.
| Dept. | Process Flow | Dept. | Process Flow | ||||
| Electroplating Proces | Racking | qty/rack：125 | |||||
| Ultrasonic clean | Temperature:45 Baume degree:15 |
||||||
| Electro | Temperature: room temperature Voltage: 5v Baume degree: 10 |
Bake | Temperature: 125 time: 120h |
||||
| Activation | Temperature: room temperature Baume degree: 5% acid |
Glazing | Involved paint materials: EC220, HD-1600 Layers of sealing glaze: 1 layer, Thickness: 0.01-0.02mm |
||||
| Alkaline copper plating 1 | Baume degree: 10 Temperature: 45 Time: 400s Voltage: 3v Current: 40a |
Rinse | 5 times | ||||
| Alkaline copper plating 2 | Baume degree: 20 Temperature: 45 Time: 400s Voltage: 3v Current: 40a |
Coloring (eg.Rose Gold/ Gunmertal) |
Temperature: 35 Voltage: 2v Time: 60s Pigment: paint=1:5 |
||||
| Acide Copper | Baume degree: 20 Temperature: 20 Time: 1500s Voltage: 5v Current: 100a Coating: 20um |
Rinse | 4 times | ||||
| Bright Nickel | Baume degree: 10 Temperature: 50 Time: 180s Voltage: 5v Current: 30 PH value: 3.8 Coating: 1um |
Activation | Temperature: room temperature Baume degree: 5% sulfuric acid |
||||
| Electro Clean | Temperature: 45 Baume degree: 10 Voltage: 2 Time: 60s |
Rinse | 3 times | ||||
Main electroplating defects
1 Appearance:after electroplating should meet the requirements, and when visually inspected, there should be no pitting, cracks, blisters, peeling and coarse crystals or any other defect which would adversely affect the final finish. If the plated parts have bubbles or cracks visible to the naked eye during the heat treatment or polishing process by the supplier, they should be
2 Surface roughness: If the final surface roughness value is specified, it can be measured according to the provisions of GB3505, and the result should meet the requirements of the buyer.
3 Thickness: The minimum thickness of the finishing coating and the bottom layer on the main surface shall be specified by the buyer.
4 Hardness: If the hardness value is specified, it can be measured according to the provisions of GB4340, and the result should meet the requirements of the buyer.
5 Bonding strength: Bonding strength (adhesion strength) After testing according to the provisions of GB5270, the bonding between the coating and the substrate, and between the coating and the bottom layer should be good, and there should be no separation.
6 Porosity If specified: the steel workpiece after electroplating shall be tested for porosity. The test result rating method is the same as that of GB9797 Appendix B accelerated corrosion test results. If there is no other provision, the rating shall not be lower than 8 .
How to detect electroplating parts
The inspection of coating quality is an important means of electroplating quality control. The inspection of coating quality is determined by different methods. Since the coating is extremely thin and firmly attached to the surface of the substrate, non-destructive methods to determine the various physical, chemical and mechanical properties of the coating must be difficult. The most basic inspection items for the quality of the coating are:
- Coating Appearance
- Coating thickness
- Adhesion strength
In addition, the determination of physical, chemical and mechanical properties of coatings such as hardness, ductility, internal stress, tensile strength, weldability, hydrogen embrittlement, ductility and corrosion resistance are also increasingly important in quality control. As far as domestic electroplating technology standards are concerned, China adopts equivalent or equivalent methods to convert international standards. At present, China national standards basically reach the current international technical level.
Below listed few tests required for electroplating:
Luster (Check the gloss of the electroplating layer)
Film thickness (Check the film thickness of electroplating layer)
Hardness (Check the hardness of the electroplating layer)
Weather Resistance (Check the weather resistance of the plating layer)
Colors that can be done by electroplating.
Below are the normal electroplating colors apply on safety razors.
