ELECTROFORMED NICKEL, INC.  

A MANUFACTURING COMPANY

785 MARTIN ROAD, HUNTSVILLE, AL 35824

PH: 256-461-1998     FAX: 256-461-6966

e-mail: efnickel@worldnet.att.net  

RHEDCO, INC.

A CONSULTING COMPANY

785 MARTIN ROAD, HUNTSVILLE, AL 35824

PH: 256-461-1998       FAX: 256-461-6966

e-mail:  rhedco@aol.com

ELECTROFORMED NICKEL, INC. is a privately owned small business formed to satisfy the unique requirements of today's highly technical industries.  Founded in 1981 and incorporated in 1985, ENI has gained international recognition as the premier company operating in the field of heavy electro-deposition of metals and alloys.  The success that we have enjoyed is the result of a carefully nurtured exchange of ideas with our customers, enabling us to produce durable and attractive products of high quality and marketability. 

    Our customer register ranges from small and medium sized companies to several of the world's largest corporations.  ENI has been surveyed and qualified for aeronautical and space flight hardware by NASA and many government contractors. Our product lines are almost equally divided between aerospace and commercial products. A sampling of our commercial product line includes such items as: molds, stamping dies, holographic replications, medical hardware, and optical or Fresnel reproductions. Products manufactured for government agencies or prime contractors include: heat shields for satellite maneuvering thrusters, backshell and coldshell electronic shielding, waveguides, autoclave bonding fixtures, rotational molds for aircraft ducting, aircraft components, chemical energy and kinetic energy anti-armor devices, regeneratively cooled rocket thrust chambers, and rocket engine injectors. Many of the electroforms fabricated at ENI are one-of-a-kind items that represent advanced concepts in this particular manufacturing discipline.

   We expanded our operations to include electrodeposited alloys for structural applications, electrodeposited OFHC copper for high thermal and electrical conductivity, and electrodeposited thick coatings of platinum group metals for oxidation protection at elevated temperature.

    Our processes have been developed by personnel with accumulative experience of more than one hundred years. Many processes used were developed through research on SBIR, or the unique requirements of  high tech industry.

    A brief description of the metals and alloys that have been electrodeposited here at Electroformed Nickel are provided. Please browse the list to determine whether we routinely produce a metal that will qualify for your requirements. 

    Should your company have special applications for hostile environment operations, please contact us for a personal evaluation.

   STRUCTURAL ELECTROFORMING FOR ENGINEERING APPLICATIONS

NICKEL: Electroformed nickel is produced from the sulfamate electrolyte. Typical mechanical properties for engineering applications meet the following range:

•  Ultimate strength, Ksi 90 to 120

•  Yield strength, Ksi 60 to 80

•  Elongation, % 10 to 20

•     Specific mechanical properties in the above range can be met and maintained over a great deposit thickness (ENI has electrodeposited nickel in thicknesses exceeding one inch). 

•     For improved weldability, sulfur is maintained below 20 ppm. Residual stress is generally less than 4 Ksi tensile; however, stress can be reduced to near neutral values for specific applications. 

•     Brightening, leveling, and stress reducing additives are not employed in Electroformed Nickel's structural nickel electrolytes, unless specifically requested to meet special optical or hardness requirements.

NICKEL/COBALT: An alloy of nickel/cobalt is used when high strength is required and the alloy will not be exposed to temperatures exceeding 450°F (232°C). Nickel/cobalt may be deposited in cobalt percentages from three to fifty-five. Mechanical properties vary with percentage of cobalt.

COPPER: ENI has the ability to deposit copper with a wide range of mechanical properties based on the application of the product. Copper may be deposited with relatively high tensile properties for structural applications or very high purity (OFHC) for electrical or thermal conductivity.

Typical analyses for Electroformed Nickel's high purity (OFHC) copper meets the following limitations:

• Oxygen Less than 10 ppm

• Hydrogen Less than 5 ppm

• Nitrogen Less than 15 ppm

• Sulfur Less than 18 ppm

   As deposited mechanical properties of the high purity copper may be varied over a wide range as follows:

• Ultimate Strength, ksi 32 to 55

• Yield Strength,  ksi 16 to 35

• Elongation, % 20 to 40

    Mechanical properties of electroformed copper can be maintained over a very great thickness based on our ability to maintain microstructural grain size and uniformity. ENI has fabricated rocket engines with copper depositions exceeding two inches. These engines have successfully fired at NASA-GRC.

   ENI electroforms copper components that exceed ten square feet of surface area. Cylindrical parts are submerged in the electrolyte and rotated in a horizontal attitude to prevent porosity from gases generated by the process.