Chemical etching is an engraving technique that involves removing material with a high-temperature, high-pressure chemical spray to create a permanently etched image in metal. To create the desired picture, a mask or resist is put to the material’s surface and selectively removed, exposing the metal.
By heating the solution and then spraying it under high pressure, and etching machine accelerates the corrosive reaction between the chemical and the material. The chemical spray melts unprotected metal regions, allowing the material to be etched atom by atom to obtain a burr-free finish. You can obtain the best chemical purity with a reliable CHEMICAL ETCHING SUPPLIER.
The material is sprayed with a high-pressure, temperature-controlled chemical spray in the etching machine (most commonly Ferric Chloride). To replicate the desired image, the solution etches away the vulnerable sections of the material.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CHEMICAL ETCHING?
Chemical etching outperforms hard tooling production procedures like stamping and die-cutting in several ways. It has a lot more design flexibility and costs a lot less to set up. The etching technique produces no mechanical disturbance to the material, resulting in parts that are free of burrs and tension, with no changes to the grain structure or magnetic characteristics.
There isn’t any expensive wearing of the tool, as with mechanically engraving methods, and no distortion of heat, as with laser cutting or engraving. Chemical etching may be used on nearly any form of metal and can process exceedingly thin materials that would be difficult to work with otherwise.
BELOW ARE THE BENEFITS:
- Chemical etching produces solutions that are unrivaled in terms of durability and offer a wide range of design options for signage and industrial labels.
- High-volume production requires consistency.
- Compared to hard tooling processes, there are lower tooling costs and more design flexibility.
- Parts that are free of burrs and tension.
- The physical characteristics and grain structure of the material are unaltered.
- Tight tolerances allow for the production of complicated geometries.
- Signage and industrial labels have never been more durable.
WHAT METALS CAN BE ETCHED CHEMICALLY?
THE FOLLOWING METALS CAN BE ETCHED CHEMICALLY:
- Stainless steel
- Copper
- Bronze
- Brass
- Aluminum
- Nitinol
- Titanium
- Zinc
- Molybdenum
- Nickel
- Gold
- Silver
- Magnesium
- Nickel Silver
- Inconel
- Beryllium Copper
- Phosphor Bronze
- Mu Metal
WHAT KIND OF CHEMICAL IS UTILIZED IN THE ETCHING PROCESS?
Ferric chloride, a safe and recyclable etchant, is used to etch most metals. It is possible to regenerate and reuse ferric chloride. For specialty metals and alloys, unique etchants such as nitric acid are employed.
APPLICATIONS OF CHEMICAL ETCHING
LABELS, SIGNS, AND NAMEPLATES
IN THE SIGN INDUSTRY, CHEMICAL ETCHING IS USED TO CREATE HIGH-QUALITY, LONG-LASTING GOODS SUCH AS:
- Industrial labels and nameplates
- Hotel Signage
- Memorial products
- Awards
- Elevator doors
- Trophies
- Wayfinding sign
ELECTRONICS
ETCHING IS USED IN THE ELECTRONICS SECTOR TO MAKE A WIDE RANGE OF PRODUCTS, INCLUDING:
- Printed Circuit Boards
- EMI/RFI shielding
- Step Stencils
- Washers
- Metal foil strain gauges
- Shims
- Filters
PRINTING
IN THE PRINTING INDUSTRY, CHEMICAL ETCHING IS USED TO CREATE HIGH-QUALITY, LONG-LASTING GOODS SUCH AS:
- Hot foil stamping dies
- Flexible cutting dies
- Intaglio printmaking
- Embossing cylinders
WHAT SIZES AND THICKNESSES OF SHEETS CAN BE ETCHED?
Etching is possible on sheet metals with a thickness of 0.010 mm to 1.5 mm. Because etching takes longer the thicker the sheet, metals thicker than 1.5mm are uneconomical to process.
CONCLUSION
Unlike stamping, which subjected sheet metals to severe pressures, this procedure does not involve mechanical force. Unlike laser cutting, it also does not put heat stress on the cutting edge. Best CHEMICAL ETCHING SUPPLIER provides high-quality chemicals for chemical etching. Chemical etching is an accurate process and very beneficial with several applications as mentioned above.