Picklex® as a non-polluting metal surface finishing pretreatment and pretreatment/conversion coating

Abstract

 Picklex (International Chemical Products, Huntsville, Alabama), a proprietary formulation, is an alternative to conventional metal surface pretreatments and is claimed not to produce waste or to lower production with no loss in performance. A laboratory program was designed to evaluate Picklex in common, large scale, polluting surface finishing operations against conventional processes, using steel and aluminum panels, measuring product coating properties, process operability, and costs. Twenty-one surface finishing combinations were tested under both "contaminated" and "noncontaminated" conditions with respect to finish adhesion, bending, impact, hardness, and corrosion resistance. Results indicate that Picklex-pretreated panels performed as well as panels that were conventionally pretreated, and with a simpler process. Picklex is particularly acceptable for powder coated steel or aluminum, but may not be suitable for certain metal plates. The results are interpreted in terms of the surface film produced by Picklex. A rate of use of 5,400 ft²/gal was estimated. Picklex did not generate by-product waste solids, was effective at room temperature, used short processing times, and was easy to use. An engineering assessment indicated that Picklex can have cost advantages as well. The economics of Picklex depend on minimizing dragout. These results suggest that Picklex is a promising alternative in some metal surface pretreatments.