Los Angeles Metalizing Process And Machines

Written By Admin on Selasa, 29 April 2014 | 01.49

By Essie Osborn


Metalizing is a wide word applied to refer to all processes of applying metal on non-metallic surfaces. The first introduction of this activity was done in 1835 when Von Justus coated glass surface with metal silver. This made mirror the earliest products to be produced through metallization. Introduction of ABS plastics led to fast growth of the procedure along with fresh remarkable improvements till where the technology has reached today.

Since substrates used are usually non-conductors, this process involves changing them into conductors first before they are plated. If the substrate is plastic in nature, chemical etching is performed through an appropriate process. Among the most appropriate processes used in etching plastic is to have it dipped into a hot mixture of sulfuric and chromic acid. The surface needs sensitizing and activating after etching. In Los Angeles metalizing is very refined particularly with the invention of vacuum metalizing.

Vacuum metalizing involves evaporating a metal material inside a vacuum chamber hence the name. The fumes of evaporated metal then settle down on the substrate to be coated forming a very uniform metalized surface. This process is also called thermal evaporation and aluminum is the most commonly used metal. Thermal evaporation falls under a group of methods known as physical vapor deposition, PVD.

Metals used in thermal evaporation need a steady supply of heat in order to vaporize. Hence there are a number of methods that can be used to provide the heat required. Some of the methods include electron beam, plasma, and resistance heating. The machine used to vaporize metal is called a vacuum metallizer and it is normally evacuated to about 0.0005mbar.

Aluminum wire is fed into the machine through separate inter-metallic evaporators. Most metallizers in use are heated through resistance. It takes a few seconds for aluminum to melt and evaporate. The substrate gets supported or held on chilled process drums and passes over the source of evaporation at varied speeds. Typical velocity is a thousand meters per minute. That velocity permits for a thin uniformly spread coat to be formed on the substrate.

Metalizing has many uses and benefits in the present day world. The first benefit is that when applied on an object, it raises its beauty and aesthetic value a lot. Numerous color shades may be included into the exercise make end commodities appear very eye-catching. The process might also be employed in producing substrates that conduct power, save electricity, and regulate light transmission and reflection.

Substrates produced using this procedure may also be used in war against theft and counterfeiting. Coat created as a result of thick layers of vaporized metal depositing can act as barriers to vapor and heat shields. Some of the mirrors installed in some famous telescopes like Hale telescope were made through the process of thermal evaporation.

Metalizing as an industrial process presents some disadvantages to people who do it. For instance, fumes generated from the process are highly dangerous to lungs when inhaled in huge amounts. The level of heat involved also presents a threat to the machine operator. This necessitates use of necessary safety gear and following of all safety rules.




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