SBIR Phase I: Environment Benign High Rate Deposition of Alloy Coatings for Electrolytic Hard Chrome Replacement

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This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims to develop a hybrid magnetron sputtering deposition process to apply alloy coatings on substrates as the replacement of electrolytic hard chrome (EHC) plating that utilizes hexavalent solution, a known carcinogen. Conventional magnetron sputtering is superior to other potential EHC replacement processes, such as electroless plating and high velocity oxygen fuel spray (HVOF) in terms of environmental impact, post machining, process temperature, adhesion to substrates, uniformity, and metallic luster. In this project, a hybrid process will be used to overcome the drawbacks of low deposition rate, limited ionization, low target utilization, and strictly line of sight deposition of traditional magnetron sputtering. Chromium coatings will be deposited in a batch coater using customized deposition hardware. It is anticipated that the resulted coatings can be applied not only to new parts for wear and corrosion protection, but also to worn parts for repair.The broader/commercial impact of this project will be the potential to replace EHC plating with an environmentally-benign, high deposition rate, and relatively low-cost hybrid magnetron sputtering process. The replacement will answer the urgent calls from federal agencies and international bodies to phase out EHC, eliminate carcinogenic mist exposure to plating shop operators, and provide current manufacturers an easy process for their critical hard coating needs. The expected outcomes of this project are process know-how and a proprietary coating system.