Surface technology reduces costs and improves usability

Functional surfaces of components and everyday objects are increasingly gaining importance. Through targeted surface modifications and adjustments of the layers to the base material, the service properties such as wear and friction behavior of the entire component are significantly influenced. These properties, in turn, increase the efficiency of products during their usage phase. Additional possibilities are created through the use of micro- and nanostructuring. Therefore, functional surfaces also play an important role at SurfaceTechnology during HANNOVER MESSE 2015. Next year, there will be a joint booth called "Micro, Nano & Materials" as a central contact point for users of micro- and nanotechnology.

Also for cost reasons, material developments are currently increasingly carried out using surface technologies. Many new processes have also been established through regulations aimed at environmental protection. For example, AHC Surface Technology GmbH has developed a selective hard chrome process that allows targeted hard chrome plating of surface areas. Components to be coated are placed in tools that only allow the coating electrolytes to reach the designated areas. All other areas of the component remain uncoated. "The selective coating process called SELGA-COAT® CHROM is significantly more efficient and environmentally friendly than conventional hard chrome processes," explains Jürgen Diesing, Marketing Manager at AHC Surface Technology. The coating takes place in a sealed system, with neither operator nor environment coming into contact with hexavalent chromium. Additionally, the system operates wastewater-free and with almost complete recycling of the chemicals used. Therefore, only a minimum of chemicals needs to be disposed of. According to EU chemical regulation REACH, hexavalent chromium may no longer be used in most cases from 2017, but SELGA-COAT® CHROM provides an exception here.

An innovative coating process entirely without the use of chemicals has been developed by AHC Surface Technology for the oxidation of aluminum surfaces, where the selective oxidation is performed using a laser (LASOX-COAT®). In an oxygen atmosphere, the laser beam is directed onto the surface of a workpiece to be processed. This causes alloy particles to melt and vaporize. The oxygen plasma, created by the influence of the laser and consisting of ionized atoms, as well as some of the molten aluminum, react to form aluminum oxide (corundum), which covers the treated surface in a layer six to ten micrometers thick. The remelting zone is approximately 100 micrometers. "The major advantage of LASOX-COAT® over electrochemical solutions is the avoidance of process chemicals like electrolytic acids," says Diesing.

The Munich-based POLIGRAT GmbH has developed a particularly environmentally friendly and economical process called POLINOX Protect as an alternative to pickling stainless steel, which also significantly improves corrosion resistance. Pickling stainless steel serves as a final cleaning of the surface from soot, iron debris, and heat tint to enable the formation of an intact passive layer as corrosion protection. This involves chemically removing the top layer of material, including the damaged passive layer, using flux, nitric acid, or sulfuric acid, so that a new, intact passive layer can form on the cleaned metal surface. Due to health and environmental risks, as well as the release of heavy metals, pickling is subject to strict regulations regarding health protection and wastewater and exhaust air treatment. POLINOX Protect works on a completely new principle: unlike pickling, existing passive layers are not removed with great effort but are altered in their composition and structure so that, as a result, the corrosion resistance of the treated stainless steel surfaces is significantly better than that of pickled surfaces. POLINOX Protect is a water-based solution made from a special combination of biodegradable, non-toxic active ingredients, which do not produce disturbing odors or toxic fumes during application. "Treatment with POLINOX Protect improves the corrosion resistance of stainless steel against all forms of corrosion that occur at temperatures below 250 degrees Celsius," says Siegfried Piesslinger-Schweiger, Managing Director of POLIGRAT GmbH.

The three innovative processes demonstrate the range of modern surface coating today. The companies will present these processes at SurfaceTechnology 2015. Top topics in Hall 3 of HANNOVER MESSE will include galvanic technology, industrial painting technology, plasma surface treatment, and micro-material processing.

Surface Technology fairs in and from Hannover

SurfaceTechnology as part of HANNOVER MESSE is one of three surface technology fairs organized by Deutsche Messe AG. The other two events are parts2clean, the international leading trade fair for parts and surface cleaning, and O&S, the international trade fair for surfaces and coatings. The next parts2clean will take place from June 9 to 11, 2015, in Stuttgart. O&S and parts2clean 2016 are also scheduled in Stuttgart from May 31 to June 2. Upcoming international fairs include SurfaceTreatment EURASIA from February 12 to 15, 2015, in Istanbul, Turkey, for the first time SurfaceTechnology NORTH AMERICA (parallel to IMTS) from September 12 to 17, 2016, and SurfaceTechnology INDIA in New Delhi from December 8 to 11, 2015.

HANNOVER MESSE – Get new technology first!

The world's leading industrial trade fair will be held from April 13 to 17, 2015, in Hannover. HANNOVER MESSE 2015 combines ten leading trade fairs in one location: Industrial Automation, Motion, Drive & Automation (MDA), Energy, Wind, MobiliTec, Digital Factory, ComVac, Industrial Supply, SurfaceTechnology, and Research & Technology. The five central themes of HANNOVER MESSE 2015 are industrial automation and IT, drive and fluid technology, energy and environmental technologies, industrial supply, production technologies and services, as well as research and development. India is the partner country of HANNOVER MESSE 2015.