Showing papers on "Electroless nickel plating published in 2015"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Raman spectroscopy characterization techniques to identify the presence of nickel deposition on the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and the degree of graphitization.
52 citations
TL;DR: In this article, an indirect tooling method using a rapid prototype model as a casting pattern is presented to build an injection mold for low-volume production of plastic parts. But the method is not suitable for high-volume injection moldings.
Abstract: A rapid tooling approach is presented in this article to build an injection mould for low-volume production of plastic parts. This is an indirect tooling method using a rapid prototype model as a casting pattern. A layer of nickel–phosphorous alloy is plated on the casting pattern before it is cast in the aluminium-filled epoxy resin to form a cavity insert. After the removal of the casting pattern, the nickel–phosphorous alloy layer left on the wall of epoxy cavity insert acts as a protective layer to improve the tool life. The insert is installed in a mouldbase for injection moulding experiment. Three plastic parts are tried on the moulds built by this rapid tooling approach. This research has shown that manufacturing an indirect rapid tooling using electroless nickel plating for low-volume production of plastic injection mouldings is feasible for the rapid prototyping models. The cavity insert can be fabricated using commonly available low-cost materials within 48 h. More importantly, the tool life is longer under normal plastic processing conditions and quality mouldings are obtained.
40 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a palladium-free and environmentally friendly surface activation process for electroless Ni plating on micro-arc oxidation (MAO) film of AZ91D Mg alloy was studied.
39 citations
TL;DR: In this article, an innovative and environmentally friendly procedure for electroless nickel plating on AZ91D magnesium alloy was studied and the composition of the alkaline and acidic fluoride-free baths and their plating process were investigated and discussed in detail.
33 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a new approach to nickel recovery from spent electroless nickel-plating (ENP) solution was investigated using ion-exchange method with brown coal, which was influenced by the solution pH, with the optimum values of pH 9.0-10.0, and was hindered by the anion species existing in the spent solution.
27 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, Ni-P coatings were deposited through electroless nickel plating in the presence and absence of ultrasound and the simultaneous synthesis of ZnO nanoparticle and its deposition under ultrasound were also carried out on the surface of Ni−P layer prepared by the classical method.
25 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a novel Ag catalyzation process using swelling impregnation pretreatment method was developed for electroless nickel (EN) deposition on Kevlar fiber, and a dense and homogeneous nickel coating was obtained on the fiber surface.
24 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, Ni-PFs were prepared by electroless nickel-plating to enhance fracture toughness of reinforced epoxy matrix composites (NiPFs/epoxy).
Abstract: Nickel-Pitch-based carbon fibres (Ni-PFs) were prepared by electroless nickel-plating to enhance fracture toughness of Ni-PFs reinforced epoxy matrix composites (Ni-PFs/epoxy). The surface properties of Ni-PFs were determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The fracture toughness of the Ni-PFs/epoxy was assessed by critical stress intensity factor ( K IC ) and critical strain energy release rate ( G IC ). The fracture toughness of Ni-PFs/epoxy was enhanced compared to those of PFs/epoxy. These results were attributed to the increase of the degree of adhesion at interfaces between Ni-PFs and matrix resins in the composites.
24 citations
TL;DR: In this article, an electroless ternary Ni-Sn-P transition layer with high corrosion resistance was applied for acid electroless nickel plating on magnesium alloys, and the surface morphologies and microstructure of the traditional alkaline electroless Ni−P and novel Ni−Sn−P transition layers were compared by SEM and XRD.
23 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the electroless nickel plating on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) surface was developed based on printing primer and then immersing in 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (KH550) solution.
Abstract: In this work, the electroless nickel plating on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) surface was developed based on printing primer and then immersing in 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (KH550) solution. The mechanism of the surface activating and structural properties of nickel plating were investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Hall measurements, optical microscope and T-peel adhesion strength. Results showed the formation of crystalline Ni and Ni–P coatings on the pretreated PET surface. The surface electrical resistivity of nickel coating was reduced from 12.18 to 0.09 ohm cm, and the adhesion strength were 9.74–9.89 N/cm, when the deposited time increased from 1 to 30 min. The average electromagnetic interference-shielding effectiveness of nickel-plated PET sheets maintained a relatively stable value (38.4–37.5 dB) in a frequency range of 0.05–1.5 GHz. The electroless nickel plating was most possibly due to the formation of higher density of carboxyl groups and then graft copolymerization of amine groups onto the pretreated PET surface. Therefore, the pretreated PET surface was more prone to absorb tin sensitizer and palladium catalyst to form an active layer for electroless nickel plating.
22 citations
TL;DR: The proposed thin electroless nickel plating procedure has a distinct advantage over a typical thick plating method in that the machining process can be endlessly repeated until the designed mirror surface is obtained.
Abstract: Freeform mirrors can be readily fabricated by a single point diamond turning (SPDT) machine. However, this machining process often leaves mid-frequency errors (MFEs) that generate undesirable diffraction effects and stray light. In this work, we propose a novel thin electroless nickel plating procedure to remove MFE on freeform surfaces. The proposed procedure has a distinct advantage over a typical thick plating method in that the machining process can be endlessly repeated until the designed mirror surface is obtained. This is of great importance because the sophisticated surface of a freeform mirror cannot be optimized by a typical SPDT machining process, which can be repeated only several times before the limited thickness of the nickel plating is consumed. We will also describe the baking process of a plated mirror to improve the hardness of the mirror surface, which is crucial for minimizing the degradation of that mirror surface that occurs during the polishing process. During the whole proposed process, the changes in surface figures and textures are monitored and cross checked by two different types of measurements, as well as by an interference pattern test. The experimental results indicate that the proposed thin electroless nickel plating procedure is very simple but powerful for removing MFEs on freeform mirror surfaces.
TL;DR: Multi-doped LiFePO 4 /C is prepared by using spent electroless nickel plating solution as a raw material in this article, which provides source materials of phosphorus, carbon, nickel and other dopants for preparing multidoped LIFePO4 /C.
TL;DR: In this article, a Ni-P film with fine and dense structure is achieved on polyimide film which consists of 92.23% Ni and 7.77% P. The Ni salt activation, which neglects the use of palladium, is adopted in pretreatment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the Ni+C composite coating has a dense microstructure, improved adhesion strength and hardness due to the effective support of Ni interlayer. And the wear test result shows that the Ni-+C composites can greatly prolong the wear life of the magnesium alloy.
TL;DR: In this article, a novel approach for the recovery of Ni, P and S was proposed through forming graphene oxide/NiAl layered double-hydroxide composite (GO/Ni-Al-LDHs) from the spent electroless nickel (EN) plating baths with the aid of ultrasonic wave.
Abstract: A novel approach for the recovery of Ni, P and S was proposed through forming graphene oxide/NiAl layered double-hydroxide composite (GO/NiAl-LDHs) from the spent electroless nickel (EN) plating baths with an aid of ultrasonic wave. The recovery efficiency of Ni, P and S could reach to 97.2%, 90.7% and 91.9% under the optimum conditions (pH 5.5, Ni 2+ :Al 3+ 2:1 (molar), ultrasonic intensity 7.7 W/cm with 60 min). The recovered material was full characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, field emission scanning electron microscope techniques, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Icp-Oes inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry and electrochemistry techniques. The produced GO/NiAl-LDHs shows promising applications as catalyst for methanol oxidation and electrode material for supercapacitor with a maximum specific capacitance of 911 F/g at current density of 1.0 A/g.
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of three activation processes on the direct electroless nickel-phosphorous plating on AZ91D was studied and an optimum activation coating for nickel deposition was developed via twice activations of K4P2O7 and NH4HF2 respectively.
Abstract: In order to optimise the activation process, the effect of three activation processes on the direct electroless nickel–phosphorous plating on AZ91D was studied. The properties of the activation coating and Ni–P coating were characterised with electrochemical tests, SEM and EDX. The results showed that an optimum activation coating for nickel deposition was developed via twice activations of K4P2O7 and NH4HF2 respectively. The first activation in the K4P2O7 solution could clean the surface and remove Mg3(PO4)2 dust produced by pickling. The coating with proper 1·12–1·49 F/O ratio (at-%) composed of MgF2 and MgO or Mg(OH)2 was produced via second activation in NH4HF2 solution. Excess hydrogen produced by Mg with H+ in the plating bath could lead to high porosity and low adhesion of Ni–P coating. A compact Ni–P coating with better adhesion and corrosion resistance was explored in this research.
TL;DR: In this paper, a double-nozzle gun was used to spray two different solutions containing the precursors onto the surface of a composite NiBP-graphite film and their corrosion and tribological properties were investigated.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to coat ternary composite NiBP-graphite films by Dynamic Chemical Plating “DCP” technique with a growth rate of at least 5 μm/h, which makes this technique a worthy candidate for production of composite films. Electroless nickel plating method can be used to deposit nickel–phosphorous and nickel–boron coatings on metals or plastic surface. However, restrictions such as toxicity, short lifetime of the plating-bath and limited plating rate have limited applications of conventional electroless processes. Design/methodology/approach – DCP is an alternative for producing metallic deposits on non-conductive materials and can be considered as a modified electroless coating process. Using a double-nozzle gun, two different solutions containing the precursors are sprayed simultaneously and separately onto the surface. With this technique, NiBP-graphite films are fabricated and their corrosion and tribological properties are investigated. Findings – With a film thickness of 2 μm, tribologi...
TL;DR: In this paper, diamond particles with the size of 1-2μm were electrophoretic deposited on foam nickel, followed by electroless nickel plating on the diamond-coated foam nickel to enhance the adhesion between diamond particles and the substrate.
TL;DR: In this article, a thin seed layer is deposited from neutral pH and alkaline electroless nickel baths which are annealed in the range of 400-420∘C for silicide morphology and contact resistivity studies.
Abstract: Electroless nickel plating is a suitable method for seed layer deposition in Ni–Cu-based solar cell metallization. Nickel silicide formation and hence contact resistivity of the interface is largely influenced by the plating process and annealing conditions. In the present work, a thin seed layer is deposited from neutral pH and alkaline electroless nickel baths which are annealed in the range of 400–420∘C for silicide morphology and contact resistivity studies. A minimum contact resistivity of 7 mΩ cm2 is obtained for seed layer deposited from alkaline bath. Silicide formation for Pd-activated samples leads to uniform surface morphology as compared with unactivated samples due to non-homogeneous migration of nickel atoms at the interface. Formation of nickel phosphides during annealing and the presence of SiO2 at Ni–Si interface creates isolated Ni2Si–Si interface with limited supply of silicon. Such an interface leads to the formation of high resistivity metal-rich Ni3Si silicide phase which limits the reduction in contact resistivity.
Patent•
08 Jul 2015
TL;DR: In this paper, a manufacturing method of highly purified nickel sulfate can extract 99% or more purity nickel from nickel and cobalt mixed hydroxide under a continuous process including recycling, minimizing use of an organic solvent and discharge of waste water, and also recovering a cobalt component.
Abstract: The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of nickel sulfate used for a cathode material of the secondary battery, industrial nickel plating, electroless nickel plating, etc More particularly, the manufacturing method of highly purified nickel sulfate can extract 99% or more purity nickel from nickel and cobalt mixed hydroxide under a continuous process including recycling, minimize use of an organic solvent and discharge of waste water, and also can recover a cobalt component By using the present invention, nickel hydroxide and cobalt hydroxide through one-step leaching process consisting of an atmospheric pressure heating reaction tank are effectively ionized, thereby minimizing autoclaving equipment and operational time for manufacturing nickel sulfate and cobalt sulfate In addition, process costs can be remarkably reduced since selectivity of a reactor and a pipe material is wider Furthermore, the leaching process is simplified as one-step of the atmospheric pressure heating reaction tank, thus erosion, corrosion, damage, etc are relatively suppressed compared to the conventional two-step leaching process consisting of an atmospheric pressure heating reaction tank and an autoclaving reaction tank, additionally, energy costs consumed for manufacturing and operational time for processing are reduced, thus an effect of increasing the manufacturing efficiency of the nickel sulfate and cobalt sulfate is expected
TL;DR: In this article, tungsten carbide (WC) powder without noble-metal activation pretreatment has been coated with a thick layer of nickel (Ni) particles by ultrasonic-assisted electroless plating process at room temperature.
Abstract: In this paper, tungsten carbide (WC) powder without noble-metal activation pretreatment has been coated with a thick layer of nickel (Ni) particles by ultrasonic-assisted electroless plating process at room temperature The surface morphologies and composition of original WC powder, pretreated WC powder, Ni-coated WC powder prepared in different electroless nickel plating (ENP) baths and worn WC–Ni composite powder were analyzed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and energy dispersion spectrometry (EDS) The results suggest that the initial WC powder, whether or not pretreatment, are both able to initiate ENP successfully WC itself is considered to have noble-metal-like catalytic performance to induce ENP under the system of sodium hypophosphite as reducing agent The surface defects created by specific chemical activation pretreatment not only effectively enhance the catalytic ability, but also improve binding force of WC substrate and Ni coating Moreover, the composition of ENP bath is a key factor which can regulate the growth rate and adsorption rate of Ni particles to maximize the catalytic activity of WC powder
TL;DR: In this article, a non-enzymatic glucose sensor is constructed by using nickel hydroxide (Ni(OH)2) modified silicon microchannel plates (MCP) as the sensing materials.
Patent•
15 Jun 2015
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed a method of manufacturing a flexible printed circuit board, capable of suppressing degradation in adhesion strength caused by diffusion of copper under thermal load during long period, having excellent heat resistance against the thermal load, as well as excellent heat resistances and excellent solder heat resistance.
Abstract: PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of manufacturing a flexible printed circuit board, capable of suppressing degradation in adhesion strength caused by diffusion of copper under thermal load during long period, having excellent heat resistance against the thermal load during long period, as well as excellent heat resistance and excellent solder heat resistance against thermal load during a short period at high temperature, without heating at high temperature after formation of an electroless nickel plating layer, without need for performing formation of the electroless nickel plating layer with a plurality of times of steps.SOLUTION: After forming an electroless nickel plating layer by a single plating on both surfaces of a polyimide film having been subjected to thermal treatment at 530°C or higher of maximum heating temperature for imide-formation or a polyimide film having been subjected to thermal treatment at 490°C or higher, the double sided nickel plating laminate polyimide film having been heated for 2.5 hours or longer at a range of 100 to 180°C is used to manufacture a flexible printed circuit board by wiring processing.
TL;DR: In this article, an environmentally friendly modified method by UV radiation was used to rapidly deposit polydopamine on the surface of PET fabric, utilising adsorption of poly-opamine to metal ions to achieve silver activation.
Abstract: An environmentally friendly modified method by UV radiation was used to rapidly deposit polydopamine on the surface of PET fabric, utilising adsorption of polydopamine to metal ions to achieve silver activation on the surface of modified PET fabric, further electroless nickel-plating with non-palladium. By UV radiation, the reaction time of dopamine in alkaline aqueous was shortened to less than 30 minutes. Meanwhile the results of scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy successfully confirmed that dopamine molecules can form polydopamine functional thin film rapidly on the PET fabric, which was able to be used to electroless nickel-plating for the next step; the nickel-plating coating of modified polyester was uniform and compact; the plating coating was Ni–P alloy with low resistivity.
TL;DR: In this paper, a composite consisting of quaternary additions, a ceramic phase, Al2O3, within a matrix of FeNi, has been prepared at the temperature range 1000-1400°C under Ar shroud.
Abstract: Ni–Fe metal matrix composites reinforced with Al2O3 have been fabricated by tube furnace sintering at various temperatures. A uniform nickel layer on Al2O3 and Fe powders was deposited using electroless plating technique prior to sintering, allowing closer surface contact than can be achieved using conventional methods such as mechanical alloying. The reactivity between Al2O3 and Fe powders to form carbides of Fe is controlled through Ni layer existing on the starting powders. A composite consisting of quaternary additions, a ceramic phase, Al2O3, within a matrix of FeNi, has been prepared at the temperature range 1000–1400 °C under Ar shroud. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope (SEM), compressive testing and hardness measurements were employed to characterize the properties of the specimens. Experimental results carried out for 1400 °C suggest that the best properties as σmax and hardness (HV) were obtained at 1400 °C and the tube sintering of electroless Ni plated Al2O3 and Fe powders is a promising technique to produce ceramic reinforced Ni–Fe composites.
Patent•
27 Apr 2015
TL;DR: In this article, a connection terminal consisting of a terminal form of copper, an electroless nickel plating film 3 stacked on the terminal forms of copper and a substitution gold plating board was proposed to keep superior soldering connection reliability even after being left under an environment of 150°C for 1000 hours.
Abstract: PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connection terminal arranged to be able to keep superior soldering connection reliability just after a reflow process and even after being left under an environment of 150°C for 1000 hours; and a board for semiconductor chip mounting use.SOLUTION: A connection terminal comprises: a terminal form of copper; an electroless nickel plating film 3 stacked on the terminal form of copper; and an electroless palladium plating film 4 stacked on the electroless nickel plating film 3. The electroless nickel plating film 3 has a thickness of 0.005-0.3 μm, and a purity of 85-97 mass%. The connection terminal further comprises: a substitution gold plating film stacked on the electroless palladium plating film; and an electroless gold plating film stacked thereon. The electroless nickel plating film includes at least one of phosphorus, boron and nitrogen. The electroless palladium plating film has a thickness of 0.01-0.4 μm.
TL;DR: In this paper, the use of three different materials, 2-mercaptobenzimidazole, 2mC-2nothiazole, and thioglycolic acid, was investigated to improve the performance of electroless nickel-plating baths.
Abstract: The use of three different materials, 2-mercaptobenzimidazole, 2-mercaptobenzothiazole, and thioglycolic acid, was investigated to improve the performance of electroless nickel-plating baths. By changing the concentrations of these materials, sample plates were coated. Optical microscope images were obtained by selecting representative coated plates. From the results of the investigations, the effects of these materials on electroless nickel plating were observed, and the most appropriate amounts of these materials for nickel plating were determined. Moreover, the nickel plating speed observed with the bath solution containing 2-mercaptobenzimidazole, 2-mercaptobenzothiazole, and thioglycolic acid is higher than that in the case of traditional electroless plating baths, but the nickel consumption amount in the former case is lower. In order to minimize the waste water generated from electroless nickel-plating baths, we determined the lowest amounts of the chemicals that can be used for the concentrations reported in the literature.
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this article, the influence of different parameters on chemical plated nickel layer was studied by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray, and the diamond was coated complete uniform with the optimal parameters.
TL;DR: In this paper, a novel approach for the simultaneous removal of nickel and phosphorus on calcined Mg-Al-CO3 hydroxides (CLDHs) is proposed, where the dependence of the adsorption efficiency on several parameters, including initial ions' concentration, temperature, contact time and pH, has been investigated with batch experiments.
Abstract: For electroless nickel plating wastewater, a novel approach for the simultaneous removal of nickel and phosphorus on calcined Mg–Al–CO3 hydroxides (CLDHs) is proposed. The dependence of the adsorption efficiency on several parameters, including initial ions' concentration, temperature, contact time and pH, has been investigated with batch experiments. The adsorption kinetics data of nickel and phosphorus could be well depicted by a pseudo-second-order model. Adsorption isotherms studies showed that the uptake of nickel and phosphorus on CLDHs followed Langmuir and Freundlich models, respectively, and that the maximum removal of nickel or phosphorus was up to 22.87 or 761.5 mg g−1. Thermodynamic analyses implied that the adsorption process of nickel or phosphorus on CLDHs was spontaneous and endothermic. Further, the possible mechanisms were explored in: low concentration solutions, CLDHs took part in reconstitution involving the isomorphous substitution of nickel at the magnesium sites in sheets and by the concomitant utilization of phosphorus by the generated superficial sheets; and in high concentration solutions, the CLDHs rebuilding hydrotalcite structures were influenced and formed mixed metal salts of phosphites, hydroxides, and hypophosphites, which were attributed to the presence of plentiful phosphorus and brought about the reduced uptake of nickel.
TL;DR: In this article, a method of fabrication for small-feature-sized nickel microbumps on gold (Au) using a newly developed technique called electroless Ni plating with noncontact induction (ENPNI) was reported.
Abstract: This paper reports a method of fabrication for small-feature-sized nickel (Ni) microbumps on gold (Au) using a newly developed technique called electroless Ni plating with noncontact induction (ENPNI). This technique, differing from conventional electroless Ni plating with contact induction (ENPCI), which directly connects an active metal with an inactive metal to induce Ni electrochemical reaction, is characterized by separation of the active metal and the target metal. The mechanism of ENPNI is interpreted by employing the electric-double layer theory, and some phenomena are explained by the proposed mechanism. Ni microbumps with a diameter of 3–6 $\mu \text{m}$ and a height of 3–4 $\mu \text{m}$ have been successfully fabricated using ENPNI. The resistance of the Ni microbumps is measured, and yield and uniformity are evaluated. By breaking the restriction of contact, ENPNI has the advantages of no need for pretreatment and contact induction, allowing fabrication of microbumps with small feature sizes for applications in which direct contact of an active induction metal is impossible.