Sound technical content, curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Pine Beach, NJ

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Enquiries about Electroless Nickel Plating

I would like to know the mechanism of electroless plating of nickel on a substrate. Also, I would like to know why is electroless nickel is more corrosion resistant than electroplated nickel?

J. CHENG
- Hong Kong
2002

Very briefly, electroless nickel is a solution which contains a powerful reducing agent like sodium hypophosphite or sodium borohydride which is capable of reducing the dissolved nickel to nickel metal in the presence of a catalyst, and the catalyst is nickel. So the reaction starts, and the deposited nickel continues to catalyze it.

It is more corrosion resistant than electrolytic nickel for two reasons. Firstly, a nickel-phosphorous alloy "metallic glass" is deposited, not nickel metal. Secondly, the thickness distribution is much better so there are no "thin spots" to rust.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2002

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