Electroless Nickel Plating

There are several methods of applying a metallic coating to a substrate which do not require the application of an outside source of electric current. The most widely used method is called electroless or autocatalytic plating in which the deposited metal is reduced from its ionic state in solution by means of a chemical reducing agent rather than by an electric current.

The chemical reducing agents used in electroless plating are much more expensive sources of electrons than the electric current, but this type of plating has a unique combination of characteristics that render it useful in many applications:

The need for re-machining a part is often eliminated after electroless nickel plating is performed. This allows for cost savings in machine time and also in aggravation. The food industry prefers a plater to use the electroless process since it is purer than the standard electrolytic nickel process where toxic cadmium and copper may he co-deposited with the nickel.

The release properties of electroless nickel are excellent so the clean up, not only on food surfaces but also on hardened steel molds, is facilitated. The electroless nickel is also corrosion resistant and it has tenacious wear properties in hostile underground environments. Thus, this process is approved for military use and use by the petroleum industries as well as wide spread use in the food processing industries.