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RHODUNA®-Alloy 1 Technical Rhodium-Ruthenium-Electrolyte

RHODUNA®-Alloy 1 Technical Rhodium-Ruthenium-Electrolyte

Meets the new requirements for wearables and mobile phones

Ease of use, attractive design and strong performance have always been the main arguments for buying wearables and mobile phones. But more and more important are the small differences such as a long lifetime and compatibility with fast chargers.

These expectations cannot be fulfilled with gold-plated charging contacts & connectors (USB-C, Pogo Pin, etc.). Gold-plated contacts corrode during the charging process if they have been in contact with salt water, swimming pool water, sweat or beverages, which leads to numerous complaints and the costly replacement of damaged devices.

If the contacts are coated with RHODUNA®-Alloy 1, they are protected against corrosion. This does not affect the ability of the devices to charge quickly. RHODUNA®-Alloy 1 has been used since 2016 for electronic contacts in reel-to-reel equipment as well as in barrel and rack operation in series production.

Further information

Electrolyte characteristics

Electrolyte type

Strongly acidic

Metal content

1.6 to 10 g/l Rh 0.1 to 0.5 g/l Ru

Operating temperature

45 (40 - 50) °C

Current density range

2 - 50 A/dm²

Plating speed

approx. 0.84 μm/min (6 A/dm²) approx. 1.02 μm/min (10 A/dm²) approx. 1.29 μm/min (20 A/dm²)

Coating characteristics

Coating

Rhodium-ruthenium

Alloy composition

70 - 98 % Rh 2 - 30 % Ru

Colour of deposit

White

Brightness

Bright

Hardness

900 HV

Density of the coating

approx. 12.4 g/cm3

Advantages

  • Very light, white and ultra-bright coatings
  • Uniform layer thickness
  • Crack-free up to 4 μm
  • Wide operating range
  • Extremely abrasion-resistant (Hardness of > 900 HV)
  • Less expensive than pure rhodium layers
  • Protects reliably against corrosion
  • No influence on fast charging
  • Suitable for reel-to-reel, rack and barrel

Applications

  • Smartwatches
  • Headphones (In-Ears)
  • Mobile phones
  • Fitness tracker
  • Plug contacts

Downloads

  • Produktblatt_RHODUNA_Alloy_technisch_EN.pdf

 

 

Your contact person

Markus Legeler

Markus Legeler

Manager Sales International
T: +49 7171 607 204
F: +49 7171 607 316
Email

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Umicore RISE Strategy 2030