Electroplating is often applied to the surface treatment of stainless steel pipes. Maybe you don't know what electroplating process is, so let's first explain what electroplating is. An electroplating process can be simply described as laying a very thin layer of metal on the surface of the object. It refers to the surface treatment of depositing cations from the surface of the object into a coating layer in the salt solution with pre-plated metal by using the object to be plated as the cathode through the effect of electrolysis. However, traditional electroplating has been gradually eliminated, only because traditional electroplating is too harmful to the environment. 
 
Types of vacuum plating for stainless steel pipes and pipe fittings
There are the following three main types of vacuum plating for stainless steel pipes and pipe fittings:
Vacuum evaporation: Under the condition of high vacuum, through the evaporation and condensation of metal filaments, the metal thin layer is attached to the plastic surface. The melting of metal (Aluminum is the most commonly used.) in the vacuum evaporation process takes only a few seconds to evaporate, and the entire cycle generally does not exceed 15 seconds. The thickness of the plating is between 0.8 and 1.2uM.
 
Sputtering: Magnetron sputtering coating equipment is multi-functional high-efficiency coating equipment. Rotating magnetron targets, intermediate frequency twin sputtering targets, unbalanced magnetron sputtering targets and DC pulse superimposed bias power supply can be configured according to users’ requirements. It is flexible in configuration and is widely used for metal or non-metal.
 
Ion plating: Use gas discharge to partially ionize the gas or evaporated substances, and deposit the evaporated substance or its reactant on the substrate under the action of the gas ion or evaporated substance ion. Ion plating include magnetron sputtering ion plating, reactive ion plating, hollow cathode discharge ion plating (hollow cathode evaporation methods) and multi-arc ion plating (cathodic arc ion plating).
 
The differences between vacuum plating and traditional electroplating are as follows:
1. Different principles
Vacuum plating, just as its name implies, is performed under the condition of a vacuum, and various thin films are deposited on the surface of the object to be plated by distillation or sputtering, which adopts physical changes. Therefore, vacuum plating is environmentally friendly. However, traditional electroplating adopts the principle of electrochemical reaction, and chemical changes are used. Therefore, it will pollute the environment.
 
2. Different features
The plating layer of vacuum plating is generally very thin, and has three prominent advantages, such as fast speeds, good adhesion and various colors. However, the processing cost of vacuum plating is relatively high. The plating film of traditional electroplating is thicker than that of vacuum plating, which can protect stainless steel pipes generally. The cost of traditional electroplating is relatively low, but its color is monotonous and does not meet environmental protection requirements.

3. Different applications
Vacuum plating has a wide selection of films and matrix materials, so it is widely used in the packaging of household appliances and cosmetics, aviation manufacturing as well as in the stainless steel industry; while traditional electroplating is mostly used in the industry, for example, the automobile industry.

The advantages of traditional electroplating are obvious, but its disadvantages are also very obvious. However, the pollution of traditional electroplating is obviously not suitable for the current environmental protection and sustainable development strategy. Although vacuum plating has relatively harsh process conditions and high costs, it can be more suitable for the current social development.

Topper Steel Pipes Co., Ltd. has various production equipment such as fully automatic laser cutting machines, pipe bending machines, chamfering machines, fine polishing machines, etc., which can realize the processes from product design, sampling to mass production according to the customer's need, and provide partners with high precision and zero defect for surfaces of stainless steel pipes and pipe fittings. At the same time, we strictly adhere to the requirements of the ISO9001 quality management system to obtain a three-in-one quality inspection network system that includes self-inspection, process mutual inspection and special inspection of inspectors' to prevent unqualified pipes and pipe fittings from getting into our customers.