Pinholes and Electroless Nickel
Question: What causes pinholes in electroless nickel deposits?
Question:
What causes pinholes in electroless nickel deposits? C.Y.
Answer:
Here are a few general areas to investigate. Your EN bath may contain organic impurities or have suspended matter. Organic impurities can end up in your bath from a couple of sources, such as the air used for agitation, dragin or incorrect tank materials. Using better filtration can reduce suspended matter.
Your base metal may have pits or other imperfections on the surfaces. Zinc diecasts are a good example of this type of problem.
The chemical balance of your tank may be out of control. If your bath is not under good control, larger than normal amounts of hydrogen may be formed on the surface of your parts giving rise to pinholes and/or pits.
Related Content
-
Products Finishing Reveals 2024 Qualifying Top Shops
PF reveals the qualifying shops in its annual Top Shops Benchmarking Survey — a program designed to offer shops insights into their overall performance in the industry.
-
A Chromium Plating Overview
An overview of decorative and hard chromium electroplating processes.
-
How to Maximize Nickel Plating Performance
The advantages of boric acid-free nickel plating include allowing manufacturers who utilize nickel plating to keep up the ever-changing regulatory policies and support sustainability efforts.
