Coatings for Tools, Tooling, Automotive, Medical Devices & More
Improve the Function & Durability of Critical Components
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Diamond-like carbon
Get today’s hottest coating with VaporTech PE-CVD DLC coatings.
Durable color coatings
The value-added beauty of VaporTech decorative coatings.
VaporTech coating machines excel at applying titanium nitride (TiN), chromium nitride (CrN), and other performance coatings for tools and tooling, pistons, engines, and biocompatible parts. Our functional PVD coatings are custom designed to make your product last longer, operate more efficiently due to lower friction, withstand high temperatures, and resist corrosion. They are especially effective for the automotive industry including performance coatings for engine parts, as well as medical devices, firearms, tooling, and more. VaporTech systems create performance coatings only microns thick, suitable for even the highest tolerance parts. Our tooling, piston, engine, and biocompatible VT Functional™ coatings are not just metal, but rather new materials made by reacting chromium, titanium, zirconium, or other metals with oxygen, nitrogen, or carbon. Common coatings include, but are not limited to:
Chromium Nitride (CrN)
Coating Characteristics: Excellent hardness and toughness, reduced friction, resistant to sliding and impact wear, excellent resistance to corrosion and oxidation, non-stick in contact with many other materials.
Common Applications: Dies and molds, tooling for machining of Cu/Al, engine components, pump parts, and as a replacement for functional plated hard chrome. (See table below for coating specs.)
Diamond-Like Carbon (DLC)
Coating Characteristics: An amorphous carbon coating with very low friction, high hardness, resistant to sliding wear, biocompatible, and an attractive appearance.
Common Applications: Automotive components, medical devices, dies, molds, firearms, cutting tools, sporting goods, and other durable consumer goods. (See table below for coating specs.)
Titanium Nitride (TiN)
Coating Characteristics: Excellent hardness and toughness, biocompatible and non-toxic, reduced friction.
Common Applications: Medical devices and surgical tools, food processing, cutting/punching tools, rotating shank tools, machining of iron alloys, and molds/dies. (See table below for coating specs.)
Zirconium Nitride (ZrN)
Coating Characteristics: Excellent general-purpose coating with high hardness/ toughness, good wear resistance, very good corrosion resistance, biocompatible.
Common Applications: Cutting and punching tools, tooling for machining Al/Ti, medical devices and dental instruments. (See table below for coating specs.)
Zirconium OxyCarbide (ZrOC)
Coating Characteristics: Moderate hardness/ toughness and wear resistance, very good corrosion resistance.
Common Applications: Durable consumer products that require good wear resistance and an attractive graphite or black appearance. (See table below for coating specs.)
| CrN | DLC | TiN | ZrN | ZrOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Color | Metallic silver | Rich, neutral graphite to black | Metallic gold | Nickel to pale gold/brass | Dark gray to black |
| Coating Hardness | 14-25 GPa 1400-2500 HV | 15–23 GPa 1500–2300 HV | 20-30 GPa 2000–3000 HV | 25-27 GPa 2500-2700 HV | 17-21 GPa 1700-2100 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–10 microns | Typical 1–5 microns | Typical 1–10 microns | Typical 1–10 microns | Typical 1–10 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.5-0.7 (dry; against alumina) | 0.08–0.11 (dry; against alumina) | 0.5-0.6 (dry; against alumina) | 0.3 – 0.4 (dry; against alumina) | 0.3 – 0.4 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 700 C | 350 C | 600 C | 600 C | 600 C |
| CrN | |
| Color | Metallic silver |
| Coating Hardness | 14-25 GPa 1400-2500 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–10 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.5-0.7 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 700 C |
| DLC | |
| Color | Rich, neutral graphite to black |
| Coating Hardness | 15–23 GPa 1500–2300 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–5 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.08–0.11 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 350 C |
| TiN | |
| Color | Metallic gold |
| Coating Hardness | 20-30 GPa 2000–3000 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–10 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.5-0.6 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 600 C |
| ZrN | |
| Color | Nickel to pale gold/brass |
| Coating Hardness | 25-27 GPa 2500-2700 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–10 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.3 – 0.4 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 600 C |
| ZrOC | |
| Color | Dark gray to black |
| Coating Hardness | 17-21 GPa 1700-2100 HV |
| Thickness Range | Typical 1–10 microns |
| Coefficient of Friction (COF) | 0.3 – 0.4 (dry; against alumina) |
| Max Temperature | 600 C |
