Electroless Nickel Plating vs. Electrolytic Nickel Plating Which One To Choose

The popularity of nickel plated connectors demonstrate how popular nickel is when it comes to plating metals, There are two ways to plate nickel onto a connector – Electroless Nickel Plating and Electrolytic Nickel Plating. Electroless Nickel plating is also known as autocatalytic plating and is a relatively simple plating process. The material to be plated is lowered into a solution that triggers a chemical reaction. This causes the metal particles in the solution to deposit onto the base material. In electrolytic nickel plating, electricity and an electrolyte solution are used. Electrical current is passed through the base material and the metal that is being used for plating, which draws the metal ions from the solution and deposits them onto the substrate.

Each method of nickel plating has its advantages, and one must choose between electroless nickel connectors and electrolytic nickel connectors based on their needs.

Difference Between Electroless Nickel Plating and Electrolytic Nickel Plating?

There are four major differences between the two types of nickel plating and they are:

1. Materials used

The materials used in Electroless Nickel connectors are different from Electrolytic Nickel connectors. While Electrolytic Nickel plating deposits a layer of pure nickel onto the substrate, the Electroless nickel connector uses an alloy which is a mix of nickel and phosphorous. Adding phosphorous to Nickel lowers its porosity, giving increased corrosion resistance and better durability.

1. Uniformity of deposit

The second difference between the two plating processes is the uniformity of the deposit. Since the material in the Electroless nickel-plating process is immersed in a chemical solution, the nickel-phosphorous coating will uniformly adhere to any area that it comes in contact with. This process provides better surface coverage than electrolytic nickel plating.

1. Adherence to substrate

Electrolytic nickel plating can only be done on a conductive base. While some materials may allow you to use graphite paint before electroplating on them, the electroplated metal will not be as tightly secured to the base material as electroless nickel plating. Electroless nickel plating allows for even non-conductive surfaces like plastic and ceramic to be plated.

1. Cost

Electrolytic nickel plating costs lesser, when compared to Electroless plating. Even though it uses electricity, it does not require regular maintenance of the bath throughout the process of plating. Some electroless plating solutions also require heating, which in turn increases the cost of utilities used during the process.

As you can see, the type of electrical connector plating to be chosen depends entirely on your needs. Always discuss your requirements with an expert who can guide you and help you choose the process that is right for you.