Nickel coating on high strength low alloy steel by pulse current deposition

Abstract

Nickel is a silvery-white metal mostly used to enhance the value, utility, and lifespan of industrial equipment and components by protecting them from corrosion. Nickel is commonly used in the chemical and food processing industries to prevent iron from contamination. Since the properties of nickel can be controlled and varied over broad ranges, nickel plating finds numerous applications in industries. In the present investigation, pulse current electro-deposition technique has been used to deposit nickel on a high strength low alloy (HSLA) steel substrate.Coating of nickel is confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and EDAX analysis. Optical microscopy and SEM is used to assess the coating characteristics. Electrochemical polarization study has been carried out to study the corrosion behaviour of nickel coating and the polarisation curves have revealed that current density used during pulse electro-deposition plays a vital role on characteristics of nickel coating.