Applications

Hydrogen atoms are extremely tiny and because of this property they can also penetrate solid materials. This process is known as permeation. Over time, pressure transmitters become inoperative due to this process. Their lifespan can however be optimized with gold coating.

The permeability of gold is about 10’000 times lower than that of stainless steel. With a 1μm gold coating of a 50 μm steel membran, hydrogen permation can be suppressed significantly more effectively than by doubling the membrane thickness to 100 μm.