Wear Characteristics of Industrial Platings

Electroplates and chemical conversion coatings are frequently employed to alter the tribonetic characteristics of surfaces; there are, however, no standard test methods for comparing these coatings. In this study, widely used metal-to-metal and abrasive wear testing techniques were modified to rank the wear characteristics of commonly used industrial electroplates and similar treatments. The main problem encountered with these “standard” tests was comparing thick platings with those that can only be produced by normal techniques in thicknesses less than about 5 μm. The testing problems and test rigs are described, and test results are presented to serve as an aid in selection of platings for solving wear problems in machine components.