Page 354 - IS-Rayfast Catalogue - Issue 9, 2017

Connectors
Materials Selection Guide
Harsh Environments

1 Materials Selection Guide Composite
Key advantages over alternative materials
for Harsh Environments include light weight, superior corrosion
2 resistance and can be lower cost when
For a connector design to perform in different manufactured in high volumes. Manufacturers
harsh environments and applications the can also plate composites for increased
3 surface hardness and conductivity.
materials selected are critical to their operation.
Connector shells are often metal and can be
4 aluminium, stainless steel, brass, titanium, or Titanium
even composite to meet the demanding harsh Often specified where corrosion resistance and
environment conditions. weight are of paramount importance. Titanium
is also used in high temperature environments.
5 Substantially higher in cost than aluminium
Common Connector Materials components.
6 Aluminium
Effective for the majority of interconnect Common Plating Finishes
applications, as satisfies both environmental
7 and interconnect requirements. Aluminium Cadmium
is strong, lightweight, corrosion resistant The historical standard finish of military and
and cost effective, with a variety of surface industrial connectors offering excellent salt
8 finishes available to enable it to satisfy various spray corrosion resistance but falls foul of
application requirements and environments. RoHS compliance legislation.
9 Nickel Aluminium Bronze Electroless Nickel
Ideal for marine applications where traditional Commonly used on industrial and high
plating finishes can quickly be eroded by sand temperature applications, where a non-
10 reflective finish and high corrosion resistance is
and dust revealing weaker base materials,
whereas Nickel Aluminium Bronze will remain not important.
11 robust in the harshest of environments.
Black Zinc Nickel
Stainless Steel The latest RoHS compliant solution to
12 Corrosion resistant steel (CRES) available environmental plating of connectors, offering
in 303, 304 and 316 grades, offers excellent high levels of compatibility with other plating
corrosion and chemical resistance plus it materials.
13 is stronger than aluminium and needs no
additional plating. More expensive than Nickel PTFE
aluminium by 3 to 4 times depending on grade A lower cost alternative to Black Zinc Nickel.
14 of material. However, the average bath lifetime of the
chemical nickel PTFE is half that of electroless
Brass nickel and ten times less than nickel alloy (zinc-
15 Brass is corrosion resistant by design and nickel).
being relatively soft, machines easily. It has
the added advantage of being a non-sparking
16
metal. Brass does not require additional
surface treatment but it is often nickel and
17 chrome plated for increased hardness, wear
resistance and enhanced appearance.

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