With so many different thin films and Diamond-Like Carbon (DLC) coatings on the market today, the choices can be overwhelming.
With many of the DLCs and thin films sharing similar characteristics, it can be hard to find the right engineering solution for your business. That’s where Industrial Hard Carbon, or IHC, can help.
IHC’s DLC coating succeeds where other DLCs fail. Moreover, our team of sales engineers speak your language and can help you determine the best solution for your application.
As a top DLC provider in diverse industries such as textiles, automotive, aerospace, and printing and packaging industries, IHC maintains a unique set of properties not found in other DLCs. While some properties are common to all DLC coatings, IHC’s unique formulation sets itself apart as one of the only DLCs to combine many diverse properties in one place.
This combination of properties makes IHC’s DLC coating the thin film coating of choice in demanding applications around the globe.
But, what are these unique properties? Below are five things you need to know about IHC’s DLC coating:
1. Extreme Hardness
While most steels top out in the low 60s in Rockwell C, IHC’s DLC coating has a hardness in excess of 90. This means higher wear resistance, longer service intervals, greater performance, and less down time in your critical applications.
2. Conformal
Unlike other DLC coatings deposited using line-of-sight methods, IHC’s DLC is deposited using a diffuse plasma. This allows for a much more uniform and comprehensive coverage of a part during coating.
Whether the part geometry is complex or simple, IHC’s DLC thin film has the ability to coat into tough to reach areas. And since IHC’s DLC coating is conformal, the underlying surface finish of the substrate is retained. This means less dollars put into post-processing, and a simpler overall manufacturing process.
With IHC’s DLC, the surface finish that goes in is what comes out (applies to surfaces with surface finish measurements greater than 2 micro-inch Ra), allowing you to focus on what matters.
3. Flexible
Thin films based on a ceramic composition like titanium nitride are extremely hard and incredibly rigid. While this is great for general purpose wear resistance, this can make them dangerous choices in applications where the counter-face material is sensitive or is easily scratched by chips in the coating.
IHC’s DLC coating is composed of an amorphous matrix of diamond and graphite giving it both extreme hardness and extreme flexibility. With a strain tolerance in excess of 0.5 percent, it exceeds the strain tolerance of most commercially available alloys. This allows IHC’s DLC to remain attached to the surface even after the substrate has yielded.
Whether in high stress or in high vibration, IHC helps protect critical components by providing the flexibility needed to survive.
4. Corrosion Resistance
While by design most thin film coatings are corrosion resistant, IHC again sets itself apart by providing one of the most inert thin films on the market. In ASTM B 117 Salt Spray Tests, IHC showed no corrosive attack after 1000 hours of exposure. This is a result simply unheard of in materials testing, and means a coating for all-weather and all-environmental conditions.
5. Low Friction
Finally, a discussion of IHC’s DLC coating is not complete without a discussion of its low coefficient of friction [CoF]. Even in dry conditions, IHC’s DLC again exceeds expectations with a CoF of just 0.04 – 0.12.
This means it can go head-to-head with PTFE-based coatings and other dry film lubricants. When combined with the other properties mentioned, it’s no wonder IHC’s DLC is the coating of choice in critical racing and motorsports applications.
Learn More About Industrial Hard Carbon!
While many DLC’s on the market have excellent properties, Industrial Hard Carbon provides the unique combination that separate it from the pack.
Find out more of what sets IHC apart from other DLC coatings on the market, and take advantage of Industrial Hard Carbon’s custom consulting to see if it’s the practical coating solution to better your part.
