Summary for xrf coating thickness measurement Discussion
XRF coating thickness measurement is presented as a fast, non-destructive way to measure copper and tin thicknesses simultaneously on aluminium. The answer says the signals from the three elements are well separated, so results should be excellent, and notes that geometric limits on the measured area are unlikely to be a problem on a new machine. A key caution from Nick Clatworthy is that the operator must know the aluminium alloy or tell the XRF the substrate composition; some instruments can do limited analysis to help identify it. The main drawback he highlights is cost: a good new unit in the UK was about £36,000, with standards adding roughly £1,000. Overall, the thread suggests XRF is technically well suited to this measurement task, but the price may be the biggest obstacle.
Q. Hi,
I measure the thickness, copper and tin concentration on Cu-Sn plated parts by X-Ray instrument. But I already encounter a problem. I divide the parts into two areas; one of them is polished and the other one is not polished. the polished area shows accurate results, but the other area shows any values for thickness, copper and Tin. All show zero. Can you help me to resolve this issue ?
Thank you
Ava Bahrami
– Houston, Texas
March 5, 2024
⇩ Similar, related, Q&As — oldest first ⇩
Q. Hi
Can some one tell me , how I can measure the plating thickness if aluminium is plated with tin with the copper as the preparatory base
Jagathees chandran
employee – Kuwait
2007
A. X ray fluorescence [XRF machines on
eBay] will measure copper and tin thicknesses simultaneously on aluminium. The signals from these three elements are all well separated so you should get excellent results. There are geometric limits to the area to be measured but these would be unlikely to trouble you on a new machine. The test is very fast and non destructive.
One problem may be if you do not know which aluminium alloy you have; you have to tell the XRF the composition of the substrate. The ones I have used had the ability to carry out a limited amount of analysis so you may be able to find out.
The main problem may well be the price though. In the UK a good new one is £36,000 and standards could add another £1000.
Nick Clatworthy
– Whitstable, Kent, UK