Tin Plating
A Square provides ROHS and REACH compliant tin plating for a number of industries including: food service, fittings, connectors, electrical distribution, bus bars, medical devices, naval, aerospace and defense. Finishes include bright to semi-bright coatings from as thin as several micro inches up to thousandths of an inch.
BENEFITS OF INDUSTRIAL TIN PLATING
- Resistant to corrosion and tarnish
- Non-toxic and food safe
- Lower Cost
- Decorative bright finish
- Barrier for dissimilar metals
- Excellent ductility
- Excellent lubricity
- Good thermal conductivity
- Good electrical conductivity
- Solderable
Tin PLATING
SPECIFICATIONS:
⬩ASTM B-545
⬩MIL-T-10727
⬩AMS 2408
⬩Customer directed
DRAWBACKS OF TIN PLATING
Tin is a semi-precious metal. As a result, it demonstrates phenomenal material properties. However, depending on the specifics of the project there could be potential drawbacks when utilizing this metal finish:
- Tin-Whiskering: Tin has the propensity to form tiny filiform tin 'whiskers' which extend from the basis metal. When dealing with small intricate parts, the whiskers can sometimes become problematic, for example short circuiting an electrical circuit. Although tin whiskers are a non-issue for most projects, A Square would be happy to provide a no-commitment analysis of your part(s) in order to help determine the likelihood of tin whisker formation.
- Low melting point: Tin melts at 232°C (450°F) and begins to flow several degrees below this threshold. Thus the metal is unsuitable for high-temperature applications. Instead, an analogous coating such as nickel plating is recommended for high-temperature applications.
- Old specifications: Many older part specifications no longer reflect the realities of the modern manufacturing and thus still call for tin/lead-alloying, hot tin dipping and/or reflowing after tin plate. These once common, now antiquated, processes have been phased out of most plating facilities. Not to despair, A Square has a proven track record of working with engineers to modernize part specifications and bring tin plating into the 21st century.