Not just a tin can
Using
nanotechnology, researchers have found a way to make tin harder and thus
enabling it to be used in the automotive and electrical industries, not just in
the food packaging. This may have implications for the future consumption of
tin.
Title of project:
Compositionally Modulated Multilayer (CMM) Coatings Consisting Of Multiple
Alternate Nanolayers of Yellow And White Miralloys
Researchers:
Prof. Hj. Zainal Arifin Hj. Ahmad
Dr. Sunara Purwadaria
Dr. Ahmad Azmin Mohamed
Hariyanti
Nur Azam Badarulzaman
Malaysia is one of the largest integrated producer of tin metal and tin-based
products in the world. Therefore, it is very concerned about the world annual
tin demand, especially as the world tin consumption has not really grown in the
past 20 years after it is was drastically reduced mainly due to tin cans being
made by other materials. Since pure tin is a non-toxic metal and resistant to
organic acids, tin is used to electroplate steel plate for producing tin cans.
Consequently, the application of tin coating is mostly for food packaging and
is not for the automotive industries which needed much harder and abrasion
resistant coatings.
However, this may soon change as researchers from University Sains Malaysia have
developed, Miralloy, a tin alloy coating which can be used in the automotive
and electrical industries.
The hardness of tin alloy coatings such as White Miralloy (55%Cu-30%Sn-15%Zn)
and Yellow Miralloy (80%Cu-17.5%Sn-2.5%Zn) are 550HV and 400HV respectively.
Due to their hardness, the coatings have been applied in automotive and
electrical industries.
More applications will be expected if the mechanical properties of the coatings
which include hardness, toughness, abrasion resistant etc. can be significantly
improved and this will be done via the development of compositionally modulated
multilayer (CMM) coatings consisting of multiple alternate nanolayers of Yellow
and White Miralloys. Using this method, the hardness of coatings may increase
up to 700HV when the thickness of each layer is decreased down 20 nm.
The hardness increase will be followed by an increase of toughness, abrasion
resistant and electrical conductivity of coatings.
In summary:
1. Using the same approach, other systems such as CMM consisting of multiple
alternate nanolayer of White Miralloy and other metals or alloys can be
developed.
2. The application of tin-alloys coating will be extended not only in
automotive industries but also for other applications. This can contribute to
re-increase world tin consumption and maintain the existence of the Malaysian
tin industry.
3. Introducing nano-technology in Malaysian electroplating industries.
Contact details of experts are available from the link below
Associated links
Bron: Metaalunie
