Chemical Nickel Plating

At a Glance

Electroless nickel plating (or EN plating) is a chemical process that deposits an even layer of nickel-phosphorus or nickel-boron alloy on the surface of a solid substrate, like metal or plastic. The process involves dipping the substrate in a water solution containing nickel salt and a suitable reducing agent.

Unlike electroplating, the process does not require passing an electric current through the bath and the substrate; the reduction of the nickel cations in solution to metallic nickel is achieved by purely chemical means. Thus EN plating creates an even layer of metal regardless of the geometry of the surface – in contrast to electroplating which suffers from uneven current density due to the effect of subtrate shape on the electric field at its surface. Moreover, EN plating can be applied to non-conductive surfaces.