Rainbow-Diamond Like Carbon (R-DLC) Locating Pins Comparison Study

2 min read

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Introduction

Material surfaces can wear over time due to the application environment especially applications due to friction between the fixture component and workpiece. To mitigate this, specific coatings are used to add life to a component and decrease downtime due to replacement. For locating pins, many applications will require a surface to surface contact of steel and aluminum workpieces therefore it is important for the pin to have a wear-resistant coating.

First, let’s review the different material types of locating pins. M2 High-Speed Steel (M2) is tungsten-molybdenum high-speed steel with a well-balanced composition suitable for a wide variety of applications. Worldwide, the M2 type is by far the most popular high-speed steel having replaced T1 high speed in most applications because of its superior properties and relative economy. They belong to the Fe–C–X multi-component alloy system where X represents chromium, tungsten, molybdenum, vanadium, or cobalt.

Next, there is 52100 steel which is a type of low alloy steel. It consists of the elements carbon, chromium, iron, manganese, silicon, phosphorus, and Sulphur, with high levels of carbon and chromium. This grade of steel is corrosion-resistant, has excellent hardenability and good machinability. It is mainly used commercially to make steel bearings.

6061-T6 aluminum is 6061 aluminum in the T6 temper. To achieve this temper, the metal is a solution heat-treated and artificially aged until it meets standard mechanical property requirements one of the most common alloys of aluminum for general-purpose use.

In this study, MISUMI tested the unique coating called Rainbow Diamond-like Carbon or R-DLC for short. Diamond-like carbon (DLC) is a class of amorphous carbon material that displays some of the typical properties of diamond. DLC is usually applied as coatings to other materials.

This white paper is split up into the tests that were performed:

  • Hardness (HIT) and Indentation Modulus (EIT)
  • Coefficient of Friction and Wear Rate
  • Statistical Tests for Each

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About the Author

Carlicia Layosa

Carlicia is the Marketing Automation Manager at MISUMI. She holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and a master's degree in Energy Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate, Marketo Certified Expert, and is passionate about education and training.

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