Hardide is applying its surface coating technology to a straightforward problem in semiconductor equipment: precision-machined components can wear, erode or suffer chemical attack long before the underlying component needs to be replaced.
The company’s approach is to protect the component’s surface rather than replace the base material or redesign the entire part. This creates a potential route to extending service life while retaining the existing component geometry and manufacturing process.
Semiconductor equipment relies on precision components with demanding dimensional and surface requirements. Components can include internal channels, bores, recesses and other complex features that are difficult to coat consistently using conventional line-of-sight processes. If those surfaces remain exposed to the operating environment, they can become a limiting factor in component life.
Hardide’s CVD coating process is designed to address this challenge. Because the process uses gaseous precursors, it can coat complex three-dimensional geometries, including internal and recessed surfaces. The company says its tungsten carbide and tungsten coatings provide high hardness, low porosity and resistance to abrasion and erosion.
The technical proposition is therefore focused on where component degradation actually occurs. A coating does not need to change the underlying design of a component if the main problem is concentrated at the surface. Protecting that surface can potentially extend operating life without requiring a completely new component.
Hardide reports hardness of up to 1600 Hv for its coatings, with porosity below 0.5% by volume. ASTM G65 testing showed Hardide-T delivering 24 times the abrasion resistance of hard chrome and six times that of HVOF WC-83%/Co-17%.
Hardide plc (LON:HDD) is a pioneer in advanced tungsten/tungsten carbide CVD coatings. They showcase unmatched capabilities to greatly extend the life of complex geometry components facing extreme wear, erosion and corrosion.
