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Trying to strip chrome nickel and copper from a thousand car wheels a week

Hello all, My name is Todd Williams and I own a media blast business.I have been contacted to strip about 1000 car wheels a week from a scrapper.my question is is there a chemical that will do all three?(chrome nickel and copper...)maybe some one could shed some light on this?keep in mind the wheels are getting melted and do not have to keep the appearance.the raw ingot is failing analysis with too much copper and he wanted me to blast the metals off but to strip them mechanically would not be cost effective.maybe you could also shed some light on how long it will take to get the metals off.

thanks a lot

Todd Williams
media blast business owner - Clearwater, Florida
November 11, 2008

You don't include one important piece of information: what material are the wheels made from (substrate). This would have a great importance in determining the chemistry that could be used to strip a copper/nickel/chrome deposit (or is a multi layer nickel used?)

Gene Packman
- Great Neck, New York
November 18, 2008

Hydrochloric acid, either commercial grade (muriatic) or industrial, will dissolve chrome first. Nitric acid in commercial grade will dissolve nickel and copper without attack to aluminum. Steel is severely attacked by nitric, so, if this is your substrate, you would require a dedicated striper for ferrous materias such as the one that advertises here. Of course, all of the above are and will generate more hazardous effluents (totally contrary to the name of your hometown) and environmental and occupational issues. G. Marrufo-Mexico

Guillermo Marrufo
Monterrey, NL, Mexico
November 24, 2008

Todd, looking at processing 1000 wheels a week, this works out to approximately a wheel every 2 minutes @ 1 shift , 5 days a week. I'd recommend using a wheel blast machine 25hp minimum, with a through feed conveyor and media classifier to remove fines and reuse media. I'd load unit with the largest media possible . IF your concerned with iron contamination, try an as cut stainless cut wire shot, say scw-90 which will destroy the surface coatings in seconds without imbedding free iron. Your benefit(s) will be reduced labor, reduced media cost and dry recyclable metals. Regards,

Tim Deakin
North Tonawanda, New York
November 25, 2008