Copper Coating for High Voltage Transfer Arms

The customer came to CMS requiring 15 high voltage transfer arms to be copper coated to a thickness of 50µm. The original plated coating was removed using our unique precision-controlled erosion system. Some parts required grinding and filling with CMS copper material due to corrosion and porosity.

Solution

Firstly, the parts that required coating removal to reveal the extent of high current damage, revealing porosity and large-scale erosion pitting. Damage and porosity were all completely filled with CMS pure copper and then ground back ready to be coated. Due to the shape of the part this required CMS to build a jig to hold the parts, so the original copper coating could be removed with CMS's CMSCE system (controlled erosion) and then a new copper coating applied. Because of the complex shape of the part CMS had to write 4 different robot programs to ensure the parts were completely coated and had the correct coating thickness.

Conclusion

CMS is an ideal solution for this job as we can work with the different materials within the part — these components are made up of four different metals. The heavy damage and porosity can be fixed first using CMS Cu material and then the part can be coated accurately with the correct amount of material applied. No distortion is caused to the part as CMS has very low heat input and high adhesion is achieved.