Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
(OP)
I am a toolmaker for my family owned business. I have an opportunity to purchase a nice heated CVD vacuum chamber for a low price.
I know very little about the process or how it actually works, but I would like to.
We perform a lot of tube cutting via the supported shear process. Our tooling is typically a-2 or d-2 standard hard. Wear is an issue and increasing time between sharpening would reduce my workload considerably. I'd like to be able to coat this tooling in house to avoid potential delays in having it done elsewhere.
How difficult would it be to learn how to make this work? What coating would be the easiest to deposit and have the best wear characteristics. Is this something that is best left to trained personnel or could I learn how to do it myself?
I'd like tin, tialn or something even harder if possible. I believe tin and tialn are via the CVD process. I'd need to know what gases are required, what materials to use for the reaction, vacuum levels etc.
Is this black magic or is it worth pursuing? I'm a decently intelligent guy and I don't mind cracking a book or studying anything to learn whatever I have to.
Could someone point me in the right direction to obtain this knowledge or offer their opinion on the feasibility of learning the process?
I'd appreciate any input.
Thanks,
Mark
Heritage Systems
I know very little about the process or how it actually works, but I would like to.
We perform a lot of tube cutting via the supported shear process. Our tooling is typically a-2 or d-2 standard hard. Wear is an issue and increasing time between sharpening would reduce my workload considerably. I'd like to be able to coat this tooling in house to avoid potential delays in having it done elsewhere.
How difficult would it be to learn how to make this work? What coating would be the easiest to deposit and have the best wear characteristics. Is this something that is best left to trained personnel or could I learn how to do it myself?
I'd like tin, tialn or something even harder if possible. I believe tin and tialn are via the CVD process. I'd need to know what gases are required, what materials to use for the reaction, vacuum levels etc.
Is this black magic or is it worth pursuing? I'm a decently intelligent guy and I don't mind cracking a book or studying anything to learn whatever I have to.
Could someone point me in the right direction to obtain this knowledge or offer their opinion on the feasibility of learning the process?
I'd appreciate any input.
Thanks,
Mark
Heritage Systems





RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
TiN is most commonly deposited via reactive PVD; the titanium is evaporated or sputtered from a metal source in a vacuum containing nitrogen. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanium_nitride
http
Maybe check the Society of Vacuum Coaters http://www.svc.org/
and process descriptions on vendor sites. E.g.,
http://www.brycoat.com/resource-pvd.html
'CERAC Coating Materials News' may be useful although mostly oriented toward optical coatings:
http://www.cerac.com/pubs/CMNarchives.htm
As with all coating processes, precleaning is essential; both prior to loading and then within the chamber.
Another thing not mentioned upfront is that you will need some means of chemical stripping poor deposits.
JTreglio is perhaps the Eng-Tips expert on these coatings. Read his responses to other posts.
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
PVD is certainly easier to bring in-house than CVD, in that the process does not involve any hazardous materials. However, most PVD equipment is pretty expensive. I do know of a small unit that is available for under $100 K, but otherwise systems typically run over $300 K. Operating costs are low.
The easiest coating to deposit is TiN -- almost impossible to mess up. Easy to tell if you've done it right -- a good TiN has a bright gold color. ZrN is a better coating, not much more difficult to deposit, and has a light gold color. TiAlN is quite difficult to deposit, as is TiCN, so I would stay away from either of those.
The simplest PVD systems to operate are cathodic arc units. They are also cheaper, and produce in general very good tool coatings.
Because both PVD and CVD are bulk processes, unless your needs are quite great it is generally better to send the parts out for coating. Where are you located? Many of the PVD houses are able to give you pretty good turnaround on tools, particularly in the Detroit area.
Jim Treglio
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Sometimes, I can get good equipment on Ebay for pennies on the dollar.
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Could you recommend any good coaters in the GR or Detroit area?
Also, if you could offer your opinion on what coating would be the most cost effective? I'd like the shear dies we use to cut stainless steel tubing coated for wear and gall resistance.
I use hardened A-2 and D-2 pretty exclusively.
Thanks!
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
http://www.tdcoating.com/
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
http
(at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48826-1226)
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
i picked up on this while reading through the thread. the answer to this is yes and no. TiN is in fact titanium nitride and it's the most common pvd coating out there. however, the structure of everybody's coating is different (as is the preparation, cleaning, handling, etc.) and you will get a slightly different coating from just about every vendor you use for coating. and don't get caught up in a trade name; "SuperSmith 2000 N" may very well just be Smith Coatings version of TiN.....it's not the end all/fix all, it's just their version of TiN.
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
Jim Treglio
RE: Questions about coatings via CVD Vacuum Chamber
equipment manufacturers: http://ww
and experts:
http://
hope it helps