AST Blog

Nickel plating is one of those terms that gets used loosely in manufacturing. People say “nickel plate it” the way they say “just weld it,” like there’s one thing happening when there are actually several, and the differences depend on what the part needs to do. What Is It? Sulfamate nickel gets its name from its basic chemistry — nickel sulfamate and sulfamic acid. It’s an electrolytic (applied with a rectifier) process that forms a highly ductile, corrosion resistant deposit, with low internal stress. Internal stress is one of those things that doesn’t come up until it causes a problem, and then it causes a big one. Every plated deposit builds up some stress during the plating process. When that stress is high, you get brittleness. You get adhesion failures. You get cracking under load or when the part goes through temperature changes. Sulfamate nickel keeps internal stress very low, Read more

Corrosion doesn’t send a warning. A part clears inspection, gets shipped, goes into service, and six months later someone’s trying to figure out why it’s failing. By then the finishing decision that caused it was made a long time ago by someone who’s long since moved on to other problems. That’s just how it usually goes. If you work with metal parts in any capacity — writing specs, quoting jobs, sourcing finished components — understanding passivation vs conversion coatings is actually worth your time. Not because the chemistry is fascinating, although some people really like it, but because these two processes get confused and the consequences tend to show up at the worst possible moment. Here’s what’s actually going on with both of them. What Is Passivation in Metal Finishing? People know it’s something you do to stainless steel. Most people don’t really know why. Here’s what’s happening. Machining stainless Read more

If you’re an OEM, you know the drill. You design a perfect component, it looks great on the CAD screen, but three months into field testing, it’s galling, seizing, or just wearing down into expensive dust. Usually, the culprit is simple: friction. Most people try to solve this with grease. But grease is messy, it attracts grit, and eventually, it fails. That’s where our high performance electroless nickel composites come in. They’re not just coatings; they basically give your metal parts a permanent, built-in “self-lubricating” skin. What’s Actually Happening in the Tank? We aren’t just painting stuff here. This is a chemical reaction. We take electroless nickel—which is already tough as nails and highly corrosion-resistant—and we co-deposit microscopic particles of PTFE (you probably know it as Teflon™) or Boron-Nitride throughout the entire layer. This isn’t some cosmetic treatment on the surface. Whether you select Pen-Tuf® (EN with PTFE) or BNEN Read more

In aerospace manufacturing, metal finishing is rarely the first thing discussed. It usually comes up later, often after a problem is identified. Corrosion. Binding during assembly. Parts that pass inspection but don’t perform as expected. When that happens, surface treatment gets a closer look. Aerospace metal finishing isn’t just about looks. It’s about how parts behave over time. Temperature swings, vibration, moisture, lubricity, service intervals. These conditions expose weaknesses quickly. Finishing processes exist to manage these stresses, not to decorate the component. Plating for aerospace parts is often selected for very specific reasons. Corrosion resistance. Controlled friction. Wear protection. In some cases, the finish matters just as much as the base material. Standards Are Expected Most aerospace finishing work is tied to specifications like SAE AMS, ASTM, or MIL-DTL. These define preparation, coating requirements, and inspection methods. Performing to these specs is mandatory. Everyone in the industry knows that. What’s Read more

Corrosion has this annoying habit of showing up when you’re not really paying attention. You think a part looks fine, and then a few months later you notice a bit of roughness or a tiny pit that definitely wasn’t there before. You’ve seen that happen on components that were supposed to “last forever,” and it’s frustrating. That’s one of the reasons high-phosphorous electroless nickel (EN) has become a “go-to” solution for designers working with close-tolerance metal parts for tough environments. The Secret Behind Uniform Coverage One valuable thing about EN is that it doesn’t rely on electricity so it has the ability to maintain a consistent deposit thickness without heavy build-up around edges and holes. The coating builds through a chemical reaction in the plating tank and, because of that, it covers everything evenly — even threads or deep recesses that can cause tolerancing trouble with electroplating. When the whole Read more

Why Magnesium is a Game-Changer for Lightweight Applications As technology evolves, industries like defense and medical manufacturing demand lighter, stronger materials. Magnesium fits the bill, offering exceptional strength-to-weight advantages. But plating magnesium? That’s where precision and expertise matter most. The Challenge of Plating Magnesium—And How AST Solves It Magnesium’s reactive nature makes it incompatible with standard plating chemistries. At AST, our process includes proprietary chemical buffering from start to finish, protecting the base metal and ensuring flawless adhesion. Decades of Experience, One Purpose-Built Line Since 2001, AST has specialized in magnesium plating. Our first attempts were rocky, but over 20 years later, we’ve refined the process into a dependable, repeatable operation with a dedicated line built just for magnesium. Real-World Results for High-Performance Industries We’ve plated tens of thousands of magnesium components—from communications chassis for military field use to ultra-light enclosures for portable oxygen generators. After nickel plating, some parts Read more

Scaling Up: How AST’s Tank Sizes Enable Industrial-Scale Production When it comes to production plating, tank capacity is more than a convenience, it’s a competitive advantage. With tanks ranging from 50 to 1,000 gallons, AST can handle large parts, prototype plating, or bulk processing with outstanding efficiency. Magnesium Line Tank Dimensions: Built for Production Our magnesium line includes 200-gallon tanks with working dimensions of approximately 42” x 36” x 30”. These are perfect for high-volume, long-run orders like a recently completed military communications project. Have Other Alloys that Need Bigger? For other alloys like steel, stainless steel, and copper parts Advanced Surface Technology can deploy tanks up to 1,000 gallons to perform electroless and electrolytic nickel, and citric passivation while maintaining plating consistency. Why Bigger is Better for Consistency and Cost Precision Chemistry Monitoring on Every Load Even with large volumes, our plating quality is uncompromising. Our lab tests chemistry Read more

A Coating That Goes Beyond Protection The defense and aerospace industries require components made with high precision to tight tolerances. Every component must perform flawlessly, often under extreme conditions. That’s why electroless nickel plating is frequently the coating of choice for mission-critical parts. Often referred to as an “engineering coating,” electroless nickel offers both corrosion protection and precision to plus or minus 0.0001” of thickness. ___________________________________________________________________ Why Defense Engineers Choose Electroless Nickel 1. Uniform Thickness on Complex GeometriesUnlike electrolytic plating, which relies on electrical current, electroless nickel is deposited through a chemical process. This means quality plating can be applied to internal cavities, deep bores, and intricate geometries. Clearly, this meets the needs of critical components in weapons systems and flight hardware. 2. Hardness and Wear ResistanceFormulations that vary the amount of phosphorus in the electroless nickel deposit can increase hardness and improve corrosion resistance. Higher deposit hardness can improve Read more

When selecting a metal coating for your application, cost is always an important factor. While it might be tempting to choose the least expensive option, it’s critical to understand the trade-offs in durability, performance, and long-term value. Here, we explore how the cost of different coating types compares, particularly focusing on our PEN-TUF® process—electroless nickel with PTFE. Relative Coating Costs There are many effective solutions for environments that require corrosion protection and where the parts are not subject to abrasion. They are relatively low in cost but are often quite effective. Examples include: As performance requirements increase, so does the need for a higher quality coating. For maximum corrosion protection and superior electrical conductivity, precious metal plating is often the best option: Of course, precious metal plating can be costly, especially since gold is currently trading at over $3,000 per troy ounce. PEN-TUF® Pen-Tuf Pentuf® is an electroless nickel plating Read more