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Study of the Effects of Additives on an EDTA-2Na Electroless Ni-P Plating System

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Abstract

The effects of additives on the deposition rate, surface morphology, Ni and P elemental content of the electroless plating layer, and roughness of the electroless plating Ni-P layer were investigated. In an electroless plating Ni-P system, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium salt (EDTA-2Na) and sodium hypophosphite monohydrate were used as the complexing agent and reductant, respectively. The linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) polarization curve results showed that the compound addition of 1.0 mg L−1 L-tyrosine, 2.0 g L−1 saccharin, and 6.0 mg L−1 sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) could inhibit sodium hypophosphite oxidation and nickel ion reduction, which eventually reduced the Ni-P deposition rate. The Tafel polarization curves indicated that the compound additives obviously improved the corrosion resistance of the Ni-P electroless plating layer. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed that the composite additives generated fine and uniform Ni-P electroless plating particles and enhanced the density, eliminated the surface cracks, and reduced the pinholes on the electroless plating layer surface. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) tests showed that the addition of complex additives improved the smoothness of the plated layer, the Ra value was reduced from 135.0 nm to 53.2 nm, and the Rq value was reduced from 164.0 nm to 93.0 nm. The final composition and implementation conditions of the EDTA-2Na-based Ni-P electroless plating system were determined. The deposition rate was 10.44 μm h−1, the P content of the electroless plating layer was 2.2%, and the electroless plating player was silver-white and bright.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21561027), Natural Science Foundation of Ningxia (2020AAC03266, 2022AAC03298, 2023AAC03340, 2023AAC03326), Innovation and Entrepreneurship Project for Returnees of Ningxia (Ning Renshe Letter [2024] No. 4), Science and Technology Innovation Leading Talent Project of Ningxia (KJT2016004), Ningxia New University Think Tank Project ([2018] 12), LiuPanShan Resources Engineering and Technology Research Center (HGZD22-18 & HGZD23-09), Key Discipline of Inorganic Chemistry ([2017] 83), and Key Research Project of Ningxia Normal University (XJZDD2321).

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (21561027), Natural Science Foundation of Ningxia (2020AAC03266, 2022AAC03298, 2023AAC03340, 2023AAC03326), Science and Technology Innovation Leading Talent Project of Ningxia (KJT2016004), Ningxia New University Think Tank Project ([2018] 12), Liupanshan Resources Engineering and Technology Research Center (HGZD22-18, HGZD23-09), Key Discipline of Inorganic Chemistry ([2017] 83), Innovation and Entrepreneurship Project for Returnees of Ningxia, Ning Renshe Letter [2024] No. 4, Key Research Project of Ningxia Normal University (XJZDD2321).

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  1. Wenxia Zhao and Kaihong Hui have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Ningxia Normal University, Guyuan, 756099, China

    Wenxia Zhao, Kaihong Hui, Wei Zhao, Huaijun Chen, Xinwei Li, Xin Liu & Yifan Song

  2. Ningxia Key Laboratory of Green Catalytic Materials and Technology, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Ningxia Normal University, Guyuan, 756099, China

    Wenxia Zhao, Kaihong Hui, Wei Zhao, Xinwei Li, Xin Liu & Yifan Song

  3. Dezhou No.2 Middle School, Dezhou, 253000, China

    Yubo Cui

  4. College of Information Science and Engineering, Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110819, China

    Kaining Hui

  5. Xi’an Aerospace City No. 4 Primary School, Xi’an, 710100, China

    Yani Yan

  6. PetroChina Petrochemical Research Institute, Beijing, 102206, China

    Liang Qiao

  7. School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, 710119, China

    Zenglin Wang

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  1. Wenxia Zhao
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Correspondence to Wenxia Zhao.

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Zhao, W., Hui, K., Zhao, W. et al. Study of the Effects of Additives on an EDTA-2Na Electroless Ni-P Plating System. J. Electron. Mater. 53, 3089–3099 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-024-11076-y

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