Caption title. "May 1994." "EPA/600-SR-94-074."

The environmental and economic implications of substituting zinc chloride electroplating for cadmium cyanide electroplating were evaluated. The process substitution successfully achieved product quality to satisfy the customer requirements for corrosion resistance. Corrosion resistance was determined by salt-spray tests in accordance with the ASTM Method B117-90. Not only did the process substitution eliminate cadmium and cyanide from the wastes and chlorine from the wastewater treatment process, thereby greatly reducing hazards to plant personnel and pollution of the environment, the process substitution also reduced oil and grease waste. On the negative side, however, the process change increased the generation of wastewater, waste-water treatment sludge, and chromium. For a new installation, the zinc-plating process offers and economic advantage of slightly lower operation cost over the cadmium-plating process.