Suppliers of fasteners to the nuclear industry are switching to sustainable corrosion protection processes to reduce environmental impact, a surface coatings expert has revealed.
Electroplating has been the most common method to protect nuts and bolts used on nuclear flasks, which are used to store radioactive waste.
However, Mark Smith, Assistant General Manager at leading surface coating specialist Anotec, said manufacturers are increasingly turning to zinc flake spray protection, which is a more sustainable solution and has the added advantage of removing the risk of hydrogen embrittlement.
Anotec coats various parts for nuclear partners, including bolts, seals, o-rings and gaskets for some of the largest sites in the UK.
Mark said: “We have been involved in the nuclear industry for some time, primarily coating bolts that are used in concrete nuclear waste containers.”
“Like most sectors, the nuclear industry is looking for innovative new ways to improve its sustainability.
“Electroplating nuts and bolts provides excellent protection against corrosion in the harshest environments but our customer was keen to find a solution that offered equal performance in a more sustainable way.
“We have found that spraying bolts in zinc flake coatings rather than electroplating results in the same excellent protection, in line with specification, but with significantly reduced energy and emissions used. Spraying also ensures perfectly even coating.
“We are seeing more enquiries around fasteners in the nuclear industry and expect that trend to continue.”
Switching from traditional electroplating to zinc flake coatings also completely eliminates the risk of hydrogen embrittlement.
Hydrogen atoms can be introduced into the metal substrate during electroplating, which can cause hydrogen embrittlement. This can lead to material becoming brittle and susceptible to sudden, catastrophic failure under stress.
No hydrogen is generated or absorbed when using zinc flake coatings, increasing the structural integrity of the parts, making them safer and more reliable.
Zinc flake coatings, used either alone or in combination with a range of topcoats, pass the most severe corrosion cyclic tests.
They protect parts from rust even after mechanical damages, such as stone chipping, thanks to its self-healing properties.
Anotec uses manual, automatic and robotic techniques to produce high-quality spray coatings, anodising and aluminium passivation, thermal diffusion and electromagnetic compatibility coatings (EMC) for several industry sectors including automotive, industrial, aerospace, wind energy, rail, defence, nuclear, petrochemical and marine.