Nickel plating
Nickel plating is another way to protect materials from damage and negative effects of weather conditions and exploitation. It is a technology consisting of coating metal products with a layer of nickel. This is made to protect materials against corrosion and for decorative purposes. It can also be used for technological purposes as a substrate for other galvanic coatings. Nickel plating is often made on steel objects. The most durable coatings are achieved by first covering the steel with a thicker layer of copper as an intermediate layer with better adhesion to both steel and nickel, followed by a thinner layer of nickel. Nickel plating is divided into two types: electrolytic and chemical.
Electrolytic nickel plating
The obtained coating is characterized by high resistance to corrosion. Even with thin layers it is possible to achieve a high gloss and very smooth surface.
Electrolytic nickel plating of metals is used for aluminium or alloyed parts, stainless steel parts, brass parts, copper parts and those made of copper alloy.
Chemical nickel plating
The coating is applied without electric current, by chemical reduction of nickel with hydrogen. This method enables surface coverage even with very complex shapes. Furthermore, chemical nickel plating makes it possible to apply coatings on surfaces such as glass or plastics. Chemical nickel plating works as a pre-layer. Chemical nickel plating is characterized by the high hardness. This feature can be further increased by heat treatment, high mechanical and corrosion resistance, good solderability and adhesion as well as electrical and thermal conductivity, high ductility, high melting point and good slip behaviour. Cause of the hardness there are wide technical applications of this method.
