Anti-seize lubricating compounds are highly vital compounds in many industries. High-temperature anti-seize greases and lubricants are vital for the effective operations, maintenance, and repair of diverse systems. When choosing the anti-seize lubricants, it gets tough to pick the right option suited to your requirements.
Here you will learn what is anti-seize, the different types of anti-seize compounds, a comparison between copper and nickel anti-seize, and anti-seize compounds application that helps you learn their differences and make the right choices. Let’s dive in.
What are Anti Seize Lubricants?
Anti-seize lubricants are special lubricants that reduce friction and prevent wear. They can protect against rust, corrosion, and galling on threaded fasteners and surfaces under high pressure or temperature conditions. Such lubricants are made of a combination of metal particles like nickel/copper, inorganic salts, petroleum oils, and other additives.
Types of Anti-Seize Compounds
Various anti-seize lubricating compounds help manufacturers to choose the right formula for specific applications. Here are the different types of anti-seize compounds:
Copper Anti-Seize Lubricants
Copper anti-seize sprays work like other lubricants, and protect metals from seizure, corrosion, and rust. They offer electrical conductivity and won’t compromise soft metals because of ingredients, such as graphite, copper flakes, and other high-pressure additives. Copper anti-seize implementations include ground screws, spark plug threads, and other automotive applications, such as brake calliper bolts, exhaust bolts, pipes, nuts, and screws. Copper anti-seize lubricants and pastes are resistant to extremely high temperatures of approximately 1800°F (982°C).
Zinc Anti-Seize Lubricants
Zinc anti-seize compounds protect against corrosion and prevent rust in iron-containing substrates. They are used mostly for threaded and unthreaded aluminium or aluminium alloy parts to prevent seizing during assembly and disassembly. Zinc anti-seize compounds work in complicated mechanical assemblies in the most complicated environments.
Metal-Free Anti-Seize Lubricants
Metal-free anti-seize lubricants offer a unique range of benefits for use in environments filled with high salt and humidity. Such materials mainly suit marine applications. Metal-free anti-seize compounds protect metal surfaces from corrosion in critical environmental conditions. As they are formulated with materials, such as graphite and calcium, temperature resistance can get as high as 2,400°F (1,315°C) and continue offering effective anti-seize properties in low-temperature conditions.
Marine-Grade Anti-Seize Lubricants
Marine-grade anti-seize compounds mainly target environments filled with humidity, salt, and high exposure to water spray and washout. Featuring high lubricity in such challenging environments, marine-grade anti-seize lubricants prevent galvanic corrosion in salted and fresh water, with a wide range of temperature resistance that prevents the seizure of steel, stainless steel, aluminium, and soft metals.
Food Grade Anti-Seize Lubricants
Food-grade anti-seize compounds are made of white oil and include Extreme Pressure (EP) additives. The food-grade anti-seize lubricants are manufactured to prevent galling, friction, and seizing in stainless steel and other metal parts in the food processing machinery. The best food-grade anti-seize lubricants feature temperature resistance of approximately +750°C and are used across a wide variety of food processing machinery.
Copper vs. Nickel Anti-Seize Lubricants
You should consider numerous factors when choosing between copper and nickel anti-seize lubricants. Copper anti-seize is usually manufactured to use on metallic threads. While, nickel anti-seize lubricants work perfectly for all kinds of threaded fasteners, including stainless steel and aluminium threads. Copper anti-seize lubricants are usually more expensive than nickel and offer superior protection against corrosion because of their higher solids content of up to 40%.
On the contrary, nickel anti-seize works at higher temperatures of up to 2200°F compared to copper, which makes it perfect for high-performance applications such as automotive engines and aerospace parts where temperatures may reach even more than 2000°F. Plus, nickel anti-seize lubricants have an overall lesser coefficient of friction that helps in reducing wear over time. Ensure to check your environment when choosing between these two types of lubricant as it can play a role in the kind of products to be chosen. The copper lubricant has a high water resistance but tends to be less stable than nickel lubricants in acidic environments, like salt spray, which makes it a better choice for dryer climates. Nickel lubricants provide better oxidation stability but don’t work well in moist environments because of their lower water resistance capacities.
Anti-Seize Compounds Applications
The diverse applicability of metal substrates in all types of industries requires dedicated anti-seize compounds, which can fulfil specific demands in a variety of environments. High-temperature anti-seize lubricants are generally required in areas that have high levels of friction and heat generation. At the other end of the spectrum, anti-seize lubricating compounds should also tolerate lower temperatures where environmental conditions control.
Stainless Steel Substrates
Stainless steel substrates expose you to many risks and challenges in seizure and galling. The application of anti-seize lubricants for stainless steel can help in minimizing many such issues and promote assembly and disassembly for repair and maintenance. However, you should remember that when numerous compounds stay for stainless steel, copper anti-seize on stainless steel will cause intercrystalline corrosion that can crack or break parts under heavy loads.
Titanium Substrates
Anti-seize for titanium substrates is mainly used in the most demanding aerospace applications and other locations where extremely lightweight connectors and fasteners are used. Anti-seize for titanium bolts prevents corrosion and galling. The nickel-based compounds are generally exceptionally effective in such areas.
The Bottom Line
Selecting the right anti-seize lubricant suited to your requirements isn’t that tricky. By performing a little bit of research, you can decide which product is the most appropriate for the application. Copper anti-seize lubricating compounds offer superior protection against corrosion. Nickel anti-seize lubricating compounds provide better oxidation stability at higher temperatures. The level of oxidation depends on your specific requirements and environmental conditions.
When choosing between copper, nickel, and other anti-seize lubricants, consider factors such as cost, temperature tolerance, and environmental conditions. The consideration of such factors will always help you to make an informed decision about which anti-seize lubricant will suit your particular application. Follow these discussed tips so you can easily choose the right type of anti-seize lubricant.