Henkel Patents Two-Stage Process for Automotive Body Surface Treatment at Audi

Sustainable automotive surface treatment

In collaboration with Audi, Henkel has developed an automotive body pre-treatment process. This patented, two-stage process enables surface treatment of multi-metal automobile bodies with aluminum content up to 100%. In traditional zinc phosphatizing, the volume of waste products increases as the aluminum content of mixed-material bodies rises. Removing these from the pre-treatment bath and from the surfaces being processed is highly costly. Due to the different surface characteristics of steel and aluminum body components, Bonderite's process provides for two-stage treatment of these. This allows for increased use of aluminum while reducing the disadvantages of existing processes; in other words, energy and chemical consumption during the production process decreases. Service costs, related downtime and waste volumes also decrease. Audi was the first company to integrate this method into its own processes. The two-stage process has now become the global standard for pre-treatment of automobile bodies with high aluminum content and is applied by the world's leading automotive manufacturers. The two-stage process is a sustainable surface treatment method providing the following advantages: • Resource efficiency through reduced waste, energy and chemicals. • Enables pre-treatment of body shells with aluminum content up to 100%. Peter Kuhm, Commercial Director Automotive Surface Treatment Europe at Henkel Adhesive Technologies, said: "The Bonderite two-stage metal pre-treatment method for multi-metal bodies provides superior corrosion performance while also reducing investment and processing costs. We are proud of our collaboration not only with Audi, but also with other leading automotive manufacturers." Bonderite is a registered trademark of Henkel and/or its subsidiaries in Germany and elsewhere.