Tin Layer as a Solid Lubricant for Cold Tube Drawing Processes

This paper reports an investigation into the deployment of a thin layer of tin as a lubricant on low carbon steel tube for tube drawing process. The layer was deposited using electro-deposition technique using a green technology of citric acid based electrolyte bath. Coating layer is characterized using SEM, EDS and 3D digital microscopy technique before and after drawing processes. Experimental trials of drawing operation were conducted and promising results were observed with respect to drawing load and surface quality. The observed drawing load is comparable to that with the conventional lubrication system thereby proving the effectiveness of the new proposed lubrication system. The use of proposed lubrication resulted in greatly improved finish as well as better corrosion resistance yielding an additional promise for better value in service life, better market potential as well as a gain on environment front as the proposed method has the potential to eliminate some after operations after drawing as the drawn tube is ready to use after drawing operation.