Non-Polluting Metal Surface Finishing Pretreatment and Pretreatment/Conversion Coating

摘要

Picklex?, a proprietary formulation, is an alternative to conventional metal surface pretreatments and is claimed not to produce waste or lower production or lower performance. A laboratory program was designed to evaluate Picklex. in common, large scale, polluting surface finishing operations against conventional processes, using steel and aluminum panels, measuring product coating properties, process operability, and costs. Twenty-one surface finishing combinations were tested under both "contaminated" and "non-contaminated" conditions with respect to finish adhesion, bending, impact, hardness, and corrosion resistance. Results indicate that Picklex ? -pretreated panels performed as well as panels that were conventionally pretreated, and with a simpler process. Picklex ? is particularly acceptable for powder coated steel or aluminum, but may not be for certain metal plates. The results are interpreted in terms of the surface film produced by Picklex.. A use rate of 5,400 ft 2/gal was estimated. Picklex. did not generate by-product waste solids, was effective at room temperature, used short processing times, and was easy to use. A field study in an actual power coating shop was conducted to validate the lab results. An engineering assessment indicated that Picklex. can have cost advantages as well.