Anodize USA

Chemistries

Pretreating Aluminum

The following U.S. Specialty Color Corporation products are designed to process aluminum for anodizing:

Cleaners:

  

Specialty 740

A superior, long lasting cleaner. Non-silicated, non-caustic has tremendous capacity for penetrating machine, petroleum and water-soluble surface soils. Mildly foaming formulation.

Specialty 760

Mildly acetic, phosphoric cleaner. Removes light soils and polishing compounds while conditioning and brightening the part surface.

Etchants:

  

Specialty 835

Our top selling alkaline etchant, which uniformly and rapidly etches aluminum alloys. It contains ingredients, which minimize the formation of scale on tank walls and heating elements to reduce maintenance costs and time.

Specialty 839

An etch additive for self-made etch solutions that aides in the chelation and rinsing properties that are lacking in straight caustic blends.

Specialty 861

A liquid acidic aluminum cleaner and conditioner. The unique formulation removes oils, grease, dirt and oxides while imparting mild etch to the surface of most aluminum alloys. Anodized parts treated with Specialty 861 appear bright and shiny, not matte.

Deoxidize/Desmut:

  

Specialty 990

Chromated deoxidizer for a wide range of alloys.

Specialty 982

Our top selling chrome-free liquid deoxidizer for a wide range of alloys. It operates at room temperature and is also an excellent deox for aluminum alloys prior to chromating.

Alpha Process Chemistry

(Alpha 777B)

Alpha 777B is an anodizing additive that:

  • Reduces burning on critical alloys such as 2000 and 7000 series.
  • Makes the anodizing bath more efficient in depositing the oxide thereby.
  • Dramatically reducing the process time and energy consumption.
  • Allows you to operate up to 80 degrees and still pass taber abrasio.n
  • Improves the micro finish of the deposited oxide.

Dying Anodized Aluminum

The following U.S. Specialty Color Corporation products are designed to dye aluminum after anodizing:

Gold N

Golden Orange RLW

Blue 4A

Olive EG
Gold S
Yellow 4A
Fast Blue 2LWN

Green SCG

Gold EAN

Yellow D

Fast Blue GN

Brown BL

Fast Gold LN

Yellow 3GL

Turquoise PLWN

Brown GL

Copper BF

Bordeaux R

Teal

Bronze 2LN

Bordeaux 2R

Green AEN

Grey BL

Orange 3A

Deep Red L

Green B Conc.

Grey NLN

Orange 2B

Blue A

Olive Drab

Violet 3D

Violet DS

Violet MRB

Black CRO

Black BK Super

Deep Black HL3

Black BKA

Black 2LW

Black BK Excel

Black BK

Deep Black MLW

Black CrFree

 

Every attempt possible was made to ensure accurate color representation. However, due to all monitors being different, not all colors will appear the same on different monitors and small variations in color may exist between the finished product and the shade illustrated on your monitor. Their suitability should be confirmed by the users own test.

Sealing Oxide Coatings

The aluminum oxide formed during the anodizing is absorbent due to its high porosity and chemical composition. Therefore the anodic oxide coating is often sealed after being anodizing to provide greater corrosion resistance. Anodized parts that are subsequently dyed, sealing of the coating enhances the lightfast properties of the colored oxide.

The sealing process consists of immersing the anodized aluminum in a boiling water bath or a nickel acetate solution, which is more widely used. The pores in the anodic coating are closed or plugged and the coating becomes resistant to further staining. This closing of the pores substantially increases the corrosion resistance of the anodic oxide coating.

The following U.S. Specialty Color Corporation products are designed for sealing aluminum after anodizing:

Specialty Sealant MTL
Our top selling, 180°F pH regulated nickel acetate liquid with smut retardant.

3Specialty Sealant
205°F nickel acetate powder with smut retardant and pH regulator.

Specialty Sealant 170
170°F nickel acetate powder with smut retardant and pH regulator.

Nickel Acetate
High quality material for self-made solutions.

Sealant Additive

Specialty Dispersant
Smut retardant for boiling water or self-made nickel acetate solutions.

Chemical Film Treatment

The following products are recommended for pretreatment of aluminum prior to Chemical film application:

(Manufactured by CST SUR TEC and distributed by Anodize USA)

SurTec 133 – Mild alkaline degreaser
Granular, mildly alkaline non-etch degreaser. Silicate free. Removes soils and polishing compounds without attack to base metal.

SurTec 136 – Mild alkaline degreaser
Liquid, alkaline silicate free, surfactant free builder. Used as is or with SurTec 089 SurTec 415 wetter systems. Provides light etch for rough or oxidized surfaces.

SurTec 181 – Alkaline etch
Liquid, highly alkaline etch for aluminum. Silicate free. Immersion or spray application. Prevents scale buildup on tank walls and piping.

SurTec 495 – Desmut
Granular salt – Used with 5% sulfuric - Excellent desmutting action after alkaline etching. Suitable for high copper, high silicon alloys. Non-fuming, simple to maintain.

ChromitAL TCP

(An Iridite or Alodine replacement)

RoHS Compliant: Click here (PDF)

Now QPL approved. Chromital 650 TCp has achieved approval on the QPL list of products that meet MIL-C-5541.Why wait any longer. Move ahead to the future. Call us to place your orders for this environmentally friendly and RoHS compliant product!

A superior Trivalent Chromium Passivation process for aluminum and its alloys.

ChromitAL TCP, supplied by CST-SurTec Inc. through Anodize USA, provides excellent bare corrosion resistance on unpainted surfaces and enhances adhesion of organic coatings. Applications include plain and anodized aluminium.

Properties:

  • Drop-in replacement for conventional hexavalent chrome passivation.
  • Environmentally safe, non-toxic, simple to operate and waste treat.
  • Meets or exceeds MIL-DTL-81706, MIL-C-5541 and MIL 5541for bare corrosion resistance (greater than or equal to 336 hrs. to first corrosion per ASTM B-117 neutral salt spray test).
  • Low contact resistance, meets electrical conductivity requirements on aluminium substrates per MIL DTL -81706 class 3.
  • Temper resistant up to 100° C with a mimimal loss in corrosion resistance.
  • Field tested on alloys 2024, 2219, 5083, 7075 and various castings.
  • Applied by immersion, spray or wipe-on for large areas finishing.
  • Other applications might include IVD (Ion Vapor Deposition) aluminium, zinc/nickel and tin/zinc plated alloys.

  • Immersion: Used at 25-35° C for most applications
  • Spray: Used at 25-35° C.
  • A thickened version for extended contact time on large surfaces.

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RoHS Compliant: Click here (new window)

Technical Bulletin: Click here (PDF)

MSDS: Click here (PDF)