Zinc-Iron Plating

Benefits & Uses

Zinc-iron plating is one of several zinc-based alloy finishes that have gained in popularity in recent years—particularly in the automotive industry. It is an alloy plating consisting of 99+% zinc metal along with <1% iron. This alloy composition can produce corrosion protection results that are superior to traditional zinc plating.

Zinc-iron plating is used solely for engineering and functional applications due to its less than desirable appearance. Its main use is to improve the corrosion resistance of steel parts. When applied, zinc-iron works as a sacrificial coating to prolong the life of the basis metal. The corrosion protection of zinc-iron plating can also be enhanced through a variety of chromate and seal post dip applications.

Our Capabilities

Varland Metal Service has the capability to barrel zinc-iron plate with a clear trivalent (non-hexavalent) chromate over ferrous alloys including low and high carbon steels (including heat treated/case hardened steels).

Excellent Corrosion Protection
Zinc-iron plating and chromating processes can produce finishes with excellent corrosion protection properties. Zinc-iron corrosion resistance is a function of both the thickness of the plating and the type of chromate/post dip treatment that is specified. Superior results are achieved on parts plated to higher zinc-iron thicknesses coupled with the proper chromate/post dip treatment.
Excellent Adhesion
Our barrel zinc-iron plating process provides excellent adhesion and ductility allowing parts to pass even the toughest adhesion tests. This means that parts that get crimped, bent, or staked during assembly will remain adherent.
Delicate & Threaded Parts
Our plating process control and engineered material handling solutions allow us to barrel plate externally threaded and dimensionally-critical parts with excellent success.

Note: to achieve good results, raw parts must be properly engineered to allow for plating build-up.

Contact Varland today to find out more about our zinc-iron plating capabilities and how we can help you with your zinc-iron plating needs.