The world's first protective chromium-based metal finish coating (mainly for aluminum) that is both environmentally benign and highly effective will be commercially available later this year as a result of a licensing arrangement between the US Navy's Air Warfare Center and Metalast International, Inc. of Minden, Nevada. The coating for anodizing, called trivalent chromium protection, has the potential to replace the industry leading, but highly toxic, hexavalent chromium coating. Hexavalent chromium has been in widespread use worldwide for more than half a century, but is hazardous for both humans and the environment. "This coating offers everything - the corrosion protection of hex chrome, without the hazard. We're thrilled to be the first company anywhere to bring it to market," said Sjon Westre, vice president of technical support at Metalast. "The product is available later this year but we've already got customers lining up," he said.
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