In addition to the more obvious benefits like a bright, shiny exterior, electropolishing is also an ideal metal finishing process for prolonging the fatigue life of metal parts that are required to remain flexible or bendable. These parts come in many forms, including laser-cut tubes, springs, machined parts, stampings and wire forms.
Electropolishing Eradicates Imperfections
Many metal manufacturing process can leave tiny imperfections or surface contaminants behind. These imperfections often become areas of high risk for corrosion. By eliminating these imperfections on the exterior of metal parts, engineers have found electropolishing to significantly advance the life of components that work as springs.
Electropolishing: A Solution For Improved Fatigue Life
Often times, a tiny crack or indentation can produce a condition that will result in failure as strain is placed along the surface of a part. This is known as “notch effect.” However this can be avoided by removing a very small layer of surface material from the part thus restoring its level, defect-free exterior. Able Electropolishing improves the performance of millions of springs each year. We work with a variety of from materials such as stainless steel, music wire and Nitinol.
Satisfying Stress Requirements
Able Electropolishing often work with stamped parts that must remain movable or flexible as part of their regular use. Electropolishing these parts is an ideal way to assure these parts continue to meet their life cycle expectations.
For example, if you are having stress requirement issues with a metal part that has been stamped out of heavy gage material, it’s likely that the stamping process left the part with micro-cracks and crevices, which caused the part to deteriorate with regular use. By electropolishing the part, we dissolve enough external material to eradicate the fissures, allowing the part to pass its demanding testing and stay functional for a longer period of time.
Cracks and fissures that lead to untimely part failure are a common issue with stainless steel springs and wire forms. After electropolishing has taken place, springs and wire forms will again meet or exceed their expected cycle levels.
For more information about using electropolishing for springs and other movable parts, contact Able Electropolishing today.
