Plating is a wet process method that can chemically decorate the surface of a resin parts with a complex shape. When plating resin parts, it is necessary to etch the surface and fix the catalyst. After that treatment, the resin parts can be treated with copper plating,nickel plating, chrome plating, etc. The resulting plating imparts surface functions such as corrosion resistance and decorativeness. This review describes the plating process and types of plating. It also describes applications to automotive parts and environmentally friendly technologies.

Embedded PVD for Design parts is a sustainable, eco-friendly coating technology developed by Oerlikon Balzers for the metallization of plastics. Therefore, the company uses only REACH-compliant material in the production process that does not involve harmful substances such as chromium VI used in conventional electroplating. The coating portfolio also enable additional component functionality and open up new possibilities for designers, such as backlit touch keys and the ability to transmit radar sensor measurements. The innovative integrated systems solution allows the metallization of plastic parts suitable for series production and creates opportunities, which are of particular interest for the automotive industry.

It has been more than 130 years since gasoline-powered vehicle appeared. Level of safety and comfort were improved, and weight became heavier because of it. The weight reduction is now one of method to get higher performance. Aluminum parts are increasing as part of the weight reduction of automobiles. Aluminum material is required to have abrasion and corrosion resistance due to soft although it is lightness. This report introduce shot peening, chemical conversion treatment, anodizing, electroless plating, electroplating, thermal spraying, vapor deposition as the surface technology of aluminum materials of automobiles, and their effects to abrasion or corrosion resistance. Furthermore it describes prospects of aluminum materials in automobile industry.

Rubber is often used for automobile parts, such as anti-vibration rubber, seal rubber and wiper blade rubber. The characteristic of rubber is that it is not slippery, but low friction is required for sliding products such as seal rubber and wiper blade rubber. This time, we introduce and explain the surface modification technology that reduces the friction of the rubber surface.

Recently, various types of body surfaces coatings for automobiles have been distributed due to the increasing demand for keeping the automobile clean and comfortable for a long period of time. This coating is roughly classified into “Wax”, “Polymer-based”, “Silicon-based (called glass coating)”, and so on. The effects of this are “maintaining the luster of the car”, “water repellency (water on the coated surface)”, “stain resistance (easy to clean)”, and “improving maintainability when washing the car”. In this paper, we will introduce silicon-based materials (silicone, polysilazane, organic silane) that can obtain high-hardness clear coating from the demand for high functionality that maintains and protects the aesthetic appearance of the car body. This coating material protects the painted surface of automobiles from oxidation and scratches, and maintains gloss.

In automobile production process, Electro coating is applied to Automotive body as primer. Electro coatings containing amine modified epoxy resin and blocked polyisocyanate as resin component provide very high anti-corrosion performance. In this article, component details, film formation mechanism, film performance, and coating line overview regarding Cathodic Electro coating are described.

MoDTC is widely used in the motor oil as the friction modifier, and its low friction effect is known to be expressed by forming MoS2. But the change of detailed structure of tribo-film in the process of running-in is not well known. There are various analytical methods for tribofilm, such as for understanding the structure and for capturing changes in wear surface, and each method has its advantages. However, there are still problems in connecting knowledge obtained by these analyzes to design for actual machine. For this reason, it is important to capture the essence of running-in process accurately. In this article, it is indicated that the experimental consideration and analytical method to clarify the running-in process. Further the analytical method of tribo interface with this viewpoint can be contributed to the materials design.

The Walther equation is often used for the viscosity temperature characteristics of lubricants. However, it was found that it cannot be applied to high pressure viscosity. In this study, the relationship between viscosity, temperature and pressure was analyzed. As a result, viscosity at each pressure was found to be negatively proportional to the square of temperature, and linear equations converges at absolute zero were derived. In parallel, a thought experiment was conducted on the viscosity of ideal liquid. It was found that the absolute zero viscosity(η_t=0) of ideal liquid is constant regardless of the pressure. This is consistent with the convergence point at absolute zero of the linear equation in the above analysis. Furthermore, a high pressure viscosity temperature linear equation incorporating the pressure was derived. This eqaution is a van der Waals type viscosity equation consisting of three intrinsic constants: absolute zero viscosity η_t=0[mPa･s], viscosity constant 1/B[GPa/K²] and pressure constant C/B[GPa]. It was found that this is liquid viscosity equation. This equation is also ideal liquid viscosity equation. Furthermore, C/B was found to be equivalent to P_R[GPa] of liquid state equation. By this, the high pressure viscosity of lubricant can be estimated from the derived van der Waals type viscosity equation.

In this study, nano-scratch tests were conducted using atomic force microscope (AFM) to clarify the hardness of a tribofilm derived from an additive (Fluid A or Fluid B in automatic-transmission fluid) formed on an SKS3 cold work tool steel substrate surface. Comparisons between nano-indentation hardness tests and AFM nano-scratch tests were performed for each specimen. Prior to these tests, the tribofilms on the SKS3 substrate were examined with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). In order to calculate the hardness of the tribofilm from the nano-scratch results, we assumed that the AFM diamond tip acted as an abrasive to plough the tribofilm. The phosphorus-derived tribofilm formed from Fluid A was harder than the sulfur-derived tribofilm from Fluid B, and it was calculated that the phosphorus-derived tribofilm was approximately 2.64 GPa and the sulfur-derived tribofilm was 1.89 GPa. After 10 nano-indentation hardness tests on each tribofilm, the maximum indentation depth into the tribofilm formed from Fluid A was approximately 31 nm, while it was approximately 36 nm for Fluid B. These results are qualitatively consistent with the hardness results obtained by the AFM nano-scratch test method.

This paper presents a modified Reynolds equation for analyzing thin film lubrication with a saturated high-viscosity surface layer on a solid surface. The saturated high-viscosity characteristics of engine oil blended with additives of metallic detergents and friction modifiers were expressed using new viscosity functions with various orders termed “viscosity model 2,” which is different from the previous model termed “viscosity model 1.”The viscosity function was then incorporated on the moving surface, and the fluid flow in the bearing gap was determined in a closed-form solution for order numbers N of 2 to 5. Subsequently the modified Reynolds equations was formulated by numerically integrating the flow equation. The modified Reynolds equation was applied to analyze the tapered pad bearing, and different features of the load capacity and friction coefficients from those for the viscosity model 1 were clarified. The effects of the order number N, viscosity ratio, bearing length, and high-viscosity layer thickness on the load capacity and friction coefficient were elucidated. It was found that when the order number N was increased to 5, the friction coefficient decreased to a minimal value, subsequently increased to the maximum value, and then decreased to the lowest value with a decrease in the trailing gap.