What is blackened steel?
Blackened steel has recently become a generic term for black metal, largely due to the huge amount of black painted metal in the market as well as the increasing demand for industrial finishes. But what is blackened steel? True steel, blackened and treated, can range from dark brown to blue and different shades of black which offers more visual interest and texture than flat paint.
To skip the blackening process and harsh chemical baths, Pure + FreeForm has created a series of blackened steels which are all VOC free, 100% recyclable aluminum, contain recycled content, and use organic inks. They are infused with our signature FEVE LUMIFLON® coating, ensuring decades of exterior life to come with no legacy of maintenance or clear coats needed. These finishes can be used indoors, outdoors, and even dozens of stories high to achieve the look of blackened steel without the potential issues that might come with it.
Below are a few of our most popular offerings.
Super Matte
Gun Metal
A black-blue coating with a charcoal grey and silver pearl, Gun Metal has a cool, subtle appearance. Compared to Frozen Titanium and Cosmos, the mottling is subtle and uniform, giving it a raw appearance that pairs well with warmer materials like wood, bronze, and brass.
Ultra-Gloss Matte
Cosmos
With new technologies such as ultra-gloss matte (UGM), we further separate the layers allowing the raw metal to pop underneath the black coating, offering a luminescent coating only found from chemical treatments. By picking up the gloss, there is an even spread of light on the surface creating a beautiful and subtle diffusive reflectivity in the finish, Cosmos.
Neo-Industrial
Black Diamond
Black Diamond is an interpretation of black metal, with a deep charcoal hairline offset by a strong diamond-pearl sublayer. The effect is a hand scraped pattern on the metal and linearity with a raw presence. The project image is City Point in Long Island City, by Gensler NYC.
Extreme Gloss Matte
Frozen Titanium
Frozen Titanium includes a galvanized texture which is only visible on an intimate scale or in intense direct light and a pearl ink which only appears in certain lights and angles.
What is Blackened Steel from Pure + FreeForm?
Our blackened steel finishes are not made with steel. Instead we use a gravure printing process to create the appearance of patinated or blackened steel that performs to the highest exterior rating for coatings – AAMA 2605. Unlike a blackened steel, our product will not rust over time and is much more lightweight, making it ideal for tall installations. Because we have super tight control over the appearance we can offer very specific looks that will match the color and texture you’re looking for for your project.
Will blackened steel rust?
A traditional blackened steel is somewhat protected from rust via the oxidation process, however it will rust over time and in the right conditions. Pure + FreeForm’s blackened steel Ultra High Performance Aluminum however, will not rust over time, which makes it an excellent choice for overhead applications and generally where a rusted appearance would compromise the overall design.
