Homogeneous lead

Homogeneous lead is a coating process in which workpieces made of steel are provided with a layer of lead several mm thick.

Procedure

First of all, the workpieces must be thoroughly cleaned, degreased and brought into a bare metal state. Then the bare steel surface is tin-plated - this intermediate layer of tin is necessary because the lead can not form a direct bond with the steel. Then individual lead rods are heated one after the other and melted drop by drop. The liquid lead combines with the tin layer, which has been melted by the heating, to form a homogeneous bond. The lead can be applied in the form of parallel beads or over a large area by pouring it into prepared auxiliary molds. When performing the homogeneous lead application by hand, the surface of the workpiece must be in a horizontal position. With this technique, layer thicknesses of approx. 3 mm to 20 mm can be achieved. The layer thickness can be increased further by repetition.

application

Due to its good resistance to aggressive chemical substances, lead is an interesting material for chemical apparatus engineering. On the other hand, the strength of lead is so low that pipes and containers would deform even at low pressure or under slight mechanical stress. Thanks to the homogeneous lead, the favorable material properties of steel and lead are ideally combined. The high strength of steel and the good chemical resistance of lead make it possible to manufacture high-performance components for the chemical industry and process engineering.