Comparative Study of Ni-Sn Alloys Electrodeposited from Choline Chloride-Based Ionic Liquids in Direct and Pulsed Current

Sabrina Patricia Rosoiu,Marius Enachescu,Aurora Petica,Stefania Costovici,Liana Anicai,Aida Ghiulnare Pantazi,Caterina Zanella,Anca Cojocaru,Teodor Visan

doi:10.3390/coatings9120801

Sabrina Patricia Rosoiu, Marius Enachescu + Show 7 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings9120801

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Abstract

This work presents, for the first time, the electrodeposition of Ni-Sn alloys in pulse current, from deep eutectic solvents (choline chloride: ethylene glycol eutectic mixture). Additionally, in this study, we report a comparison of the electrodeposition methods known as pulse and direct current. The elemental composition of the films, evaluated from EDX, remained almost constant independently on the electrodeposition parameters. The XRD data revealed the presence of the NiSn metastable phase, which has been confirmed by DSC analysis. This phase shows a nanocrystalline structure with crystallite sizes between 12 and 20 nm. The use of pulse current electrodeposition method has led to an improvement of alloys’ mechanical properties. Moreover, by controlling the electrodeposition parameters, we succeeded in tuning the mechanical properties of the coatings prepared through the PC method. We showed that the hardness parameters exhibited by the Ni-Sn alloys are strongly dependent on their crystallite sizes.

Highlights

Metal coatings have been widely used in surface protection or as decorative applications
Different amounts of nickel and of tinNickel-Tin salts have been added to a Deep eutectic solvents (DES) of choline chloride: ethylen glycol (ILEG), which results in three different types electrolytes: ILEG-NiSn
Different amounts of nickel and tin salts have beenofadded to a DES of choline chloride: ethylen 2, 1, ILEG-NiSn (ILEG), which results in three different types ofwere electrolytes: ILEG-NiSn

Summary

Introduction

Metal coatings have been widely used in surface protection or as decorative applications. Tin is a soft metal and easy to melt (223 ◦ C melting point). When tin is combined with other metals such as nickel, the resulting alloys are suitable for a wide range of applications such as surgical instruments, watch pars, printed circuits boards, and electrical connectors, which represent an alternative to chromium decoration due to their good anticorrosive properties. They have been investigated as anode material in lithium ion batteries [1,2,3].

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