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Etching a pattern in aluminum before anodizing

2006

Hi,

This is a 3 part question, but I'll start by explaining what I want to do. I want to high polish a piece of aluminium sheeting then etch a fairly complex pattern onto it before having it anodized in plain silver.

My questions are:
1. Will the etched pattern still be visible after the anodizing, considering that the rest of the aluminium is polished?
2. What is the best solvent to use for etching aluminium?
3. What can I use to mask out my pattern for the etching?

Thanks,

Leon Bezuidenhout

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2006

You can use next solution:
70 gm muriatic acid [affil links] (conc.)
1 lit water
20-30 °C
or
200 gm sodium hydroxide
1 lit water
60-90 °C
Good luck!

Goran Budija

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2006

Hi Leon,
Did you ever receive a substantive reply for etching aluminum ? Or did the formulas you received work ?

I am in the process of needing to etch some aluminum plate and was wondering whether you have used a successful method

regards,

Peter Vasic

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The following solution is commonly used in the microelectronics industry for etching aluminium. 80 ml orthophosphoric acid, 10 ml nitric acid, 10 ml acetic acid [on eBay or Amazon], 20 ml water.

Dr. Gary Callon
University of Dundee
Arbroath, Scotland
2006

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