Electrodeposition of nickel/silicon carbide composite coatings on a rotating disc electrode
Abstract
Composite coatings suitable for protection against wear were prepared by electrodeposition from a nickel Watts solution containing silicon carbide particles maintained in suspension. To obtain a better understanding of hydrodynamic effects on the codeposition process a rotating disc electrode, immersed in a vertical rising flow, was used. The local concentration of embedded SiC along the radius of the disc electrode was studied as a function of suspension concentration, rotation rate and the particle mean diameter. The effect of a rheoactive polymer was also examined. Although it is generally admitted that the particle incorporation rate is governed by a two-step adsorption process, the experimental results show that it is also dependent on the spatial distribution of the wall fluid flow. The normal component of the fluid velocity promotes particle impingement, whereas the parallel component tends to eject the loosely fixed particles. The competition between the forces which tend to maintain particles attached to the surface and the shear force which tends to remove them, depends on several parameters, in particular the surface chemistry and the size of the particles, the flow rate and the current density.