The authoritative public forum
  for Metal Finishing since 1989
-----

Adhesion of electroless nickel onto nickel iron alloy

I have to electroless nickel some parts made of mild steel and 50:50 nickel iron alloy separated by a glass insulator. The parts arrive with a thick oxide film created in a furnace at 1000°C. Mixtures of acids remove the oxide film and etch the metal surfaces. I have tried activating in a proprietary mixture of bifluoride and bisulphate but the adhesion is good on the nickel iron alloy only if I strike with Woods nickel. The problem is that the parts are too small for human fingers to make electrical contact with wire and they come to me by the thousand. Can anyone suggest a way of ensuring good adhesion without using an electric current?

Nick Clatworthy
Plating Technologist, Electrical connector manufacturer. - Whitstable, Kent, UK
2006

---

Make the NIckel Strike at 2 pounds per gallon Nickel Chloride with 1 quart per gallon HCl Acid and barrel plate for 5 to 8 minutes, then transfer to the Electroless Nickel.
Remove the Nickel Anodes when not in use to prevent metal from climbing.

Robert H Probert
Robert H Probert Technical Services

Garner, North Carolina

2006

We gre doing electroplated diamond tools with Ni-Fe alloy plating on mild steel. But we do not get good adhesion. The layer of diamond with nickel-iron is removed. Pl. suggest us the process for improving the adhesion.

Jaman vagadia
metalurgical- Rajkot, Gujrat.
2007