Effect of passivation process on nickel

We need to passivate a bellow coupling made from stainless steel. The hubs are manufactured from AISI 303, and the below is manufactured from AISI 316. The bellow is edge-formed into groves in the hubs, and then pressed with a nickel wire to fix the bellow on the hubs.

We are concern about the possible degradation of this connection system produced by the passivation process because of the presence of the nickel.

Should we forget the passivation for our application?

Can we mask the connection area and then passivate the coupling?

Fernando:

Passivation of assemblies containing nickel parts can usually be done safely and easily with citric acid based formulations that are available on the market. We have experience in doing this. It is important to use the right formulation, but the process is safe and fast.