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Steel etching by ferric chloride

Q. Hi we have a printing press. We etch the printing plates with nitric acid. But now we want to try ferric chloride ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil links] . We've taken a few trials for it but we found the crack patterns and the etching time is very high. We need to etch to get the depth of 30 to 50 microns within 4 to 5 minutes.

"Etching"

on AbeBooks

or Amazon

(affil link)

With regards,

Nalini Bora
nNp press - India
2003

A. Presumably you are "jetting" the ferric chloride ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil links] at the plates - if not you should. The ferric chloride ⇦ on eBay or Amazon [affil links] should be about 45 °C and concentrated. Although you do not say what grade steel you are using, most steels won't stand up to this solution very long.

Trevor Crichton
R&D practical scientist
Chesham, Bucks, UK
2003

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