Nanodiamonds,
since their inception, are finding their way into different applications like
cosmetics, coatings, quantum sensing, tools and equipment, electronics,
biomedical, and various others. They are getting immense popularity as they
come with several sought-after properties and qualities which cannot be
obtained through other materials. While their application is becoming more diverse,
their nanodiamond coating application is still highly preferred in the
industry.
So,
this post is being shared with you to discuss what nanodiamonds are and what
makes them suitable for coating application.
What
are Nanodiamonds?
Technically,
carbon nanodiamonds consist of a complex structure as its inner core is made up
of diamond and the outer part is made of amorphous carbon shell. They belong to
the group of zero-dimensional carbon nanoallotrope and have diamondoid like
monocrystalline topology with crystal domains and complex structure.
Generally
speaking, they are the diamonds whose size range in nanoscale. The availability
of such smaller particles with extreme tough core is definitely an immediate
advantage which can be exploited in many ways. The common way of producing
nanodiamonds is chemical vapor deposition.
Due
to their unique structure, they possess a wide array of unique properties such
as:
- Extreme
hardness
- High
surface area
- Mechanical
robustness
- High
electrochemical stability
- Excellent
thermal conductivity
- Environmental
inertness
- Optimum
insulating property
- Non-toxicity
- Biocompatibility
What Makes Nanodiamonds Suitable for Coating Applications?
Physical
properties like hardness, friction wear and tear properties, and thermal
conductivity are now available to the coating industry because of the
nanodiamonds.
Since
these properties of nanodiamonds are so different than most materials,
engineers need only a small loading of nanoscale diamond particles to
dramatically change the properties of existing materials.
Improvements
of up to 60% in surface coating properties such as wear resistance, coefficient
of friction and thermal conductivity can be obtained by adding a few percent by
weight of nanodiamond material and in some cases as small as 0.1%.
The
improvement in coating performance comes in part from the presence of
nanodiamonds - hardwearing particles integrated into the polymers. However,
there is also a change in the overall structure of the coating, for instance,
the crack structures are finer and smaller in size, surface finish measurement
is lower about 85%, and the surface appears smoother and somewhat glossy.
Therefore,
nanodiamond coating is widely preferred for the coating of materials
where we need to enhance their properties like strength, wear resistance,
abrasion resistance, and durability.
In
nickel and gold electroplating, a high improvement in wear resistance can be
achieved with just fractional quantities of nanodiamonds while using
agglomerated suspensions.
The
current improvement in nanodiamond-polymer is focused on friction and wear
properties to achieve greater results in surface coatings and creating
thermally conductive polymers for thermal management applications in LED
lighting and electronics.
