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Letter 4238
Electroless Nickel Plating of Powder
Metal Products
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I am working for a small plating company. They are having trouble
achieving a quality eletroless nickel plating on powder metal
products. Does anyone have any suggestions for pretreatment and
process control that may help? Thanks in advance for your assistance.
David J. Zeese
BMT - Indianapolis, Indiana USA
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David:
From your letter, I do not know the nature of the problems you are
experiencing. I do know that many powder metal companies resin
impregnate their parts before plating. Resin impregnating seals the
porosity in the part and provides a much better plating surface.
Richard Toms
- Macon, GA
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I have plated on a limited basis EN on powdered metal parts. If
the parts are being impregnated ( and done correctly), the other area
of concern is proper surface prep of the parts. My experience has
been the aklaine cleaning may need to be adjusted to properly remove
excess resin. Electrocleaning can be detrimental, it tends to open up
pores, and you need to watch any pickling steps. It worked for us to
go with a stronger acid a shorter period of time if it was needed at
all. Also, beware that the powder that makes up the part probably
contains other metals than iron such as copper. Good Luck!
Mike Wells
Jamestown Electro Plating - jamestown, NY
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David, Resin impregnation is a remedy that will fill the porosity
voids in your powder metal parts and provide a much better surface
for plating. As well, you will get increased machinability through
this process. The thing to watch for when using resin impregnation is
cleanliness. Although there is no specification for actually
cleanliness required, the cleaner the part, the better the process
works.
Joe Babcock
- Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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