Volume 8, Issue 2, September 2014, Pages 334–344
Olawale O. Ajibola1 and Daniel T. Oloruntoba2
1 Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Dept., Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
2 Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Dept., Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cathodic protection is still one of most useful methods of corrosion control applicable to metal surfaces. Copper is often applied on steels for its good adhesion and improved appearance. Organic additives to plating baths improve the throwing power, levelling and brightening of the film. Hence the effects of surface polishing grit and Saccharin-550 additive on copper plating of steels were studied. Two standard NST60Mn and NST50-2 steels were electroplated in acid-sulphate bath using saccharin-550 as additive. Copper film thickness reduces as surface polishing grit increased with or without additive. The film properties improve as the substrate surface improves, with the most stable, metallic, lustre and adhesion obtained on 400µm and 600µm finishes without additive. Increasing saccharin-550 concentration from 0.1g/l to 0.5g/l improved film quality. Lower 0.1g/l saccharin-550 concentration produced higher thickness but poor brightening. Optimum plating parameters were obtained at 2V, 200g/l CuSO4.H2O, 600µm SFG and 0.5g/l saccharin. The density of copper plates is increased while porosity is reduced. The coat becomes more tenacious and protective in nature, and deposited in form of metal sheet rather than the powdery form. Types of steel do not control Cu-deposition but rather the polishing grade of steel surface.
Author Keywords: Surface polishing grit, Saccharin-550, levelling agent, brightening, copper-plating, carbon steel.
Olawale O. Ajibola1 and Daniel T. Oloruntoba2
1 Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Dept., Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
2 Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Dept., Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Cathodic protection is still one of most useful methods of corrosion control applicable to metal surfaces. Copper is often applied on steels for its good adhesion and improved appearance. Organic additives to plating baths improve the throwing power, levelling and brightening of the film. Hence the effects of surface polishing grit and Saccharin-550 additive on copper plating of steels were studied. Two standard NST60Mn and NST50-2 steels were electroplated in acid-sulphate bath using saccharin-550 as additive. Copper film thickness reduces as surface polishing grit increased with or without additive. The film properties improve as the substrate surface improves, with the most stable, metallic, lustre and adhesion obtained on 400µm and 600µm finishes without additive. Increasing saccharin-550 concentration from 0.1g/l to 0.5g/l improved film quality. Lower 0.1g/l saccharin-550 concentration produced higher thickness but poor brightening. Optimum plating parameters were obtained at 2V, 200g/l CuSO4.H2O, 600µm SFG and 0.5g/l saccharin. The density of copper plates is increased while porosity is reduced. The coat becomes more tenacious and protective in nature, and deposited in form of metal sheet rather than the powdery form. Types of steel do not control Cu-deposition but rather the polishing grade of steel surface.
Author Keywords: Surface polishing grit, Saccharin-550, levelling agent, brightening, copper-plating, carbon steel.
How to Cite this Article
Olawale O. Ajibola and Daniel T. Oloruntoba, “Effects of polishing grades and Saccharin-550 additive on copper electroplating on NST60Mn and NST50-2 steels,” International Journal of Innovation and Scientific Research, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 334–344, September 2014.
