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Oerlikon Metco Develops Carbide Materials to Solve Harsh Industrial Wear Challenges

Wohlen, Switzerland, August 11, 2014 — The widespread demand for increased uptime, encourages Oerlikon Metco to continually develop reliable surface technology products that protect components against wear under extreme conditions. Metco is part of the newly formed Oerlikon Surface Solutions Segment as announced on June 3. The company manufactures specialty carbide materials needed to extend component service life and improve productivity. As a result, oil and gas, mining and other industries benefit from substantial savings in time and money.

“With rising expenses for oil and gas exploration and expectations for production companies to increase annual earnings over the next five years, it is vital that industry growth is supported by safe and reliable technologies,” states Oerlikon Metco’s Vice President and Head of Global Marketing, Dr. Hans Keller. “The broad choices of optimized carbide materials we offer for weld overlay and thermal spray are proven solutions for wear protection. Our clients can select tailored materials to match their specific surface needs and operating environments so they can customize their operations and significantly reduce downtime repairs and costs.”

Surfaces produced from carbide materials are the preferred protection method for parts that must withstand the effects of wear. Oerlikon Metco produces modern carbides specially designed to resist the harshest environments of corrosion, impact, high compressive loads, deformation, cavitation, solid particle erosion, severe abrasion and complex, combined mechanisms. For instance, while the company designs high-quality materials in standard cobalt matrixes for best wear protection, matrixes of nickel-cobalt-chromium are available for environments that require corrosion resistance.

The type of carbide used in the material, as well as the carbide grain size, is also chosen for the specific application. “We excel at tailored combinations of carbides and matrix compositions to optimize component service life,” explains Manfred Oechsle, product line manager at Oerlikon Metco for carbides and hard facing materials. “The key is to design a combination with the right wear and the right corrosion resistance for the downhole formation pH and hardness.”

Carbide coating solutions help operators maximize production with resilient surfaces for other applications. A typical example consists of high-pressure gate valves used in the oil and gas industry for flow diversion and safety applications. These are exposed to galling, abrasion and erosion causing leaks or faulty actuation. Oerlikon Metco carbide coatings protect the gates and seats from damaging surface attacks ensuring smooth actuation and safe operation.

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