LED Streetlight Housing Die Casting Case Study
LED streetlight housing die casting case study: A360 alloy, e-coat primer, and corrected fins solved thermal and salt spray failures on a coastal program.
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Project photos for LED streetlight housing die casting
Finished Component
The completed die casting or machined component delivered for this project, demonstrating dimensional accuracy and surface quality.
Production & Inspection
In-process die casting operations, leak testing, machining, and quality inspection steps applied during this program.
Customer: LED lighting OEM, Netherlands Program: 150W streetlight housing for municipal coastal installation Annual volume: 35,000 pieces/year Material: A360 aluminum + e-coat + powder coat Weight: 2.1 kg Requirements: Thermal resistance <0.12°C/W, IP66, 10-year coastal service life (800-hour salt spray minimum)
The Challenge
Previous design: A380 aluminum with direct powder coat. Failing their 800-hour salt spray qualification when tested after 2-year accelerated cyclic corrosion simulation. Coating intact -but underlying aluminum showed pitting at fin edges through coating micro-cracks.
Simultaneously, LED junction temperatures at 84°C in 35°C ambient -1°C below the 85°C limit with no margin for production variation or LED aging.
Two problems, one program.
Solution
Alloy Change: A380 -> A360
A360's copper content (0.6% max vs A380's 3.5%) eliminates the galvanic corrosion mechanism driving pitting. Comparative salt spray: A380 without coating showed pitting at 120 hours; A360 without coating showed none at 500 hours.
Coating Change: Direct Powder -> E-coat Primer + Powder
E-coat (cathodic epoxy, 18 μm) applied before 70 μm powder topcoat. E-coat provides full coverage on fin inner faces and internal surfaces inaccessible to spray powder -a continuous barrier layer that protects the substrate even if the topcoat is scratched during installation. Combined result: >1,200 hours salt spray, 150% of specification.
Fin Geometry Correction
DFM review found 6 of 18 fins exceeding 4:1 height-to-thickness castability ratio -causing inconsistent fill (3 fins short-filling on 12% of shots). Revised to maintain fin height while increasing thickness from 1.5 mm to 1.8 mm.
Thermal improvement: More uniform fin fill + A360's higher thermal conductivity (113 vs 96 W/m·K for A380) dropped LED junction temperature from 84°C to 78°C -a 6°C improvement creating adequate margin.
IP66 Sealing
O-ring groove geometry re-specified to match AS568 O-ring standard sizes. Surface finish Ra <1.6 μm on groove radius. First-article IP66 test (20 kPa water jet, 3 minutes): 12/12 pass.
Results
| Metric | Previous (A380) | KastMfg (A360) |
|---|---|---|
| Salt spray | 480 hrs (fails 800 hr spec) | >1,200 hrs |
| LED junction temp at 35°C | 84°C | 78°C |
| Fin fill consistency | 88% | 100% |
| IP66 first-article pass | 8/12 | 12/12 |
| Coating adhesion (cross-hatch) | GT2 | GT0 |
Contact KastMfg: casting@kastdiecast.com | +86 138 1403 4409 | No.6, Rungu Road, Nanjing, China
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