Diamond is the hardest substance in nature. Due to its very high hardness, diamond can scratch marks on almost any object, so diamond particles is often used in industry.
For example, diamond particles are covered on the substrate of various tools. This process is realized by electroplating process. It can manufacture some grinding and cutting diamond tools, such as diamond saw blades, diamond drill bits, diamond grinding point,diamond hand pad,diamond flap disc,diamond wire saw and electroplated diamond polishing pads.
What is Electroplating Process
Diamond electroplated plating is to energize the electroplating solution and the workpiece, and then deposit diamond particles on the surface of the tool base. Then under the action of the electric field, nickel will decompose and release nickel atoms, which are deposited on the workpiece that already has diamond particles. The diamond particles on the surface It will gradually be wrapped up to form a diamond coating.
Diamond electroplating process steps
Preparing electroplated diamond tools requires preparation in sequence, preparing diamond plating, fixing emery on the surface of the substrate, thickening the nickel layer, and processing.
Ready to process
First, the surface of the tool substrate to be electroplated is pretreated. It is to clean the substrate to remove oil dirt and impurities on the surface. Then, the surface is roughened and coated with a layer of suitable metal using mechanical or chemical treatment.
Preparing to wrap the diamond particlesin the tool matrix
Preparatory diamond is a layer of elemental nickel plated on the surface of the substrate, which serves as a transition layer and is closely combined with the substrate.
Filled with diamond particles
There are two methods to fix diamond particles on the surface of the substrate using mechanical methods or physical methods.
The first method can only adhere diamond sand to one surface of the tool base at a time. It is more suitable for single-sided electroplated diamond products, such as diamond grinding discs. It uses less emery and can be completed with high efficiency. Suitable for mass production.
The second method is to bury the matrix of the diamond product that requires electroplating into a pile of diamond particles. In this way, multiple surfaces of the matrix can adhere to emery in one operation. Therefore, this method is suitable for cylindrical or irregular-shaped products, but it uses more emery and the efficiency will be lower.
After the emery wrapping is completed, vibrate slightly to knock off the emery particles that are not firmly adhered to the substrate and are not consolidated by the nickel plating layer.
Thickened nickel layer
The processing procedure uses the same plating solution formula as the pre-plating procedure to further thicken the nickel layer. During the entire pre-plating, adhering emery and thickening plating, attention must be paid to the precise control of process parameters such as current, temperature and PH value.
Electroplating process
Place the tool base filled with emery particles in an electroplating tank and connect it as the anode. Add electroplating solution to the tank and connect it as the cathode. Then, by applying an electric current, the emery particles are deposited on the surface of the substrate to form a coating. The size of the current and the length of time can be adjusted as needed.
Drying and finishing
After electroplating is completed, the substrate of the coating needs to be dried. You can use ovens, drying rooms and other equipment to heat it to ensure that the coating is completely dry. Then, the coating is subjected to lightening treatment to improve the surface finish and brightness.
Grinding and improving precision
Before grinding, the coating needs to be quality inspected to ensure that the thickness and quality of the coating meet the requirements. The plating is then ground using specialized grinding tools and abrasives. The purpose of grinding is to improve the flatness and surface accuracy of the coating.
Coating protection
Finally, the diamond coating needs to be protected. Electrochemical deposition, chemical deposition or physical deposition can be used to coat the surface of the coating with a layer of protective agent. The protective agent can improve the corrosion resistance and service life of the diamond coating.
Classification of Electroplated Diamond Tools
Electroplated diamond tools are most suitable for processing hard and brittle materials that are difficult to process, such as carbide, glass, ceramics, gems, natural stones, semiconductors, copper, aluminum, non-ferrous metals, and composite materials that are difficult to process such as rubber and resin.
Electroplated diamond can be made into diamond grinding discs, diamond grinding wheels, diamond wire saws, diamond drill bits, etc.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Electroplated Diamond
The main advantage of diamond electroplating is to make diamond firmly attached to the substrate, improving the hardness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance of the material.
The main disadvantage is that the emery particles will have uneven deposition and large roughness, so higher equipment and technical requirements are required.
Choose an electroplated diamond tool that’s right for your job. If you’re working with hard and brittle materials, electroplated diamond is a great choice. It grinds materials perfectly.
Thnak you for your reading!
