Hobbyists & Industry luminaries alike learn on every visit
(we earn from 'affiliate link' purchases)

Curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET

finishing.com -- The Home Page of the Finishing Industry

  The authoritative public forum
  for Metal Finishing 1989-2025

-----

Nickel Activation - Cathodic or Anodic?

March 8, 2009

Dear sir,
I run an electroplating shop for semiconductor plating.Recently, I am asked to activate nickel that has undergone curing processes in the assembly of LED.I wonder if nickel can be activated cathodically by using sulfamic acid ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] or sulfuric acid. Hope you can enlighten me on whether cathodic or anodic activation works best and common activation approach. Thank you
Adrian

Adrian Gal
Electroplater - Penang, Malaysia

March 9, 2009

Hi, Adrian. A Wood's Nickel strike bath would usually be used for this, rather than a simple acid salt. Some people find that an anodic cycle before the cathodic strike can be useful, I understand, but this may be something you need to work out by experiment. Jack Dini's "Electrodeposition: The Materials Science of Coatings and Substrates" has a great chapter on 'Adhesion' that covers this issue of activating nickel and includes tables of adhesion values.

Regards,

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

(No "dead threads" here! If this page isn't currently on the Hotline your Q, A, or Comment will restore it)

Q, A, or Comment on THIS thread -or- Start a NEW Thread

Disclaimer: It's not possible to fully diagnose a finishing problem or the hazards of an operation via these pages. All information presented is for general reference and does not represent a professional opinion nor the policy of an author's employer. The internet is largely anonymous & unvetted; some names may be fictitious and some recommendations might be harmful.

If you are seeking a product or service related to metal finishing, please check these Directories: