What is metallizing wire and how is it used?
Introduction
Metallizing wire plays a major role in the vacuum metalizing industry due to flexible applications. When it comes to creating problems in the production of metalizing wire, there are different reliable metals. These materials are handled by carefully to control the metalizing process.
A metalizing wire is made from a material that has unique and versatile set of properties. These properties allow it to be used in a wide variety of industries ranging from automotive to aeronautics and in the metallizing industry as well. Despite the low weight, some alloys are stronger than steel. This strength combined with resistance to corrosion, electrical conductivity and reflectivity make it a desirable element.
What is metalizing?
Metalizing is the process of coating a layer of metal on the surface of an object. This coating might serve a protective, functional or decorative purpose.
The process of metalizing began with the mirror making. Justus Von Liebig, in 1835 discovered the process of covering a piece of glass with metallic silver to create a mirror. Therefore, mirrors became one of the first objects made with metallization.
The process of metallization became important as it allowed metallic properties such as electrical conductivity to be imparted to non-metallic objects like plastics.
Some of the commonly used metalizing processes are
· Vacuum metalizing which involves heating the metal that is to be used as a coating to its boiling point in a vacuum chamber. This is followed by letting the vapors deposit on the substrate surface. Resistance heating, plasma or electron beams are commonly used to vaporize the material. This process is used to deposit aluminum on mirrors of the large reflecting telescopes.
· In the thermal spray process, metals are applied to steel for a longer duration than conventional paint can provide. This process uses Aluminium metalizing wire alongside zinc ones.
· The cold sprayable metal technology involves the metallization of a given surface using a cold sprayable of putty able metal to a surface with the help of metal powder, binder, and hardener.
Metallizing Wire
In order to create a metalizing wire out of aluminum, the metal is supplied to a wire manufacturing mill in the form of a rod. The rod of aluminum is made by either casting or rolling. These rods are classified using heat numbers, and each rod belonging to a particular heat number has a particular set of properties.
The metal rod is then cold- drawn in order to make a wire of the desired length. A set of tapered carbide or diamond dies are used to make the process of drawing the rod into wires a lot easier. It takes nearly 10 to 25 dies to turn a rod of aluminum to create a metalizing wire of the desired length.
If the situation demands, the metal might undergo a heat treatment, or it might be applied to the wire that has been drawn.
The process requires a lot of lubricants while pulling the metal through the dies. In the case of metalizing wires, it needs to be completely cleaned up before shipping the final product.