Anodize Aluminum 6061 1

[sarclee]

Hi, may I ask if anodizing Al6061 would make it non-conductive too?

 

[IRstuff]

In general, yes, but it's a pretty thin, but hard, oxide. We typically have to mask off regions from anodizing to get EMI conductivity

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[sarclee]

Thanks IRstuff.

Yeah. I am concerned it is thin and whether it can survive during vibration... it sounds like I need to get some experimental data?

 

[MintJulep]

Anodize is mainly a cosmetic treatment with a side effect of corrosion protection.

If you need electrical insulation then use an insulator.

 

[3DDave]

Anodize is also a fatigue crack initiation source. It forms an irregular, rigid, oxide crystal on the surface of a soft metal. Good for abrasion resistance; not so good if the part flexes.

 

[sarclee]

Thanks MinJulep and 3DDave!

@MintJulep, the part needs to be insulated is also structural part... wonder what other metal material can be used other than plastic?

 

[WKTaylor]

This question begs 'a reason WHY' are You considering anodize of 6061... when conversion coatings may do the trick.

OH,BTW what temper 6061??? -T4 or -T6... and 'how thin'? Is it to be welded?

For electrical use exclusively in a very controlled environment?

Etc. The quality of our answers = quality of the question/parameters.

Regards, Wil Taylor
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o We believe to be true what we prefer to be true. [Unknown]
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[sarclee]

Hi WKTaylor,

My bad. The temper is T6.No welded joint and all screw and nut in a space environment.

 

[WKTaylor]

It sounds like You might be designing a micro/small-sat?

I love spaceflight/spacecraft/satellite design... even though my bread-n-butter has been MIL! Materials in space are at a whole different level than earth-bound aircraft.

The NASA LDEF experiment used anodized 6061-T? for experiment trays... so it got +5.5 years on-orbit exposure. Awhile back I got a copy of the following document that might be very useful.

LDEF Materials Results for Spacecraft Applications

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19940026507/downloads/19940026507.pdf

There are others, related to real-world [out-of-this-world] findings... do some digging.

Regards, Wil Taylor
o Trust - But Verify!
o We believe to be true what we prefer to be true. [Unknown]
o For those who believe, no proof is required; for those who cannot believe, no proof is possible. [variation,Stuart Chase]
o Unfortunately, in science what You 'believe' is irrelevant. ["Orion", Homebuiltairplanes.com forum]