Electroless Ni–Co–P coating of cenospheres using [Ag(NH 3) 2] + activator

Abstract

Electroless Ni–Co–P coating of fly-ash cenosphere particles is demonstrated in the present investigation. The electroless Ni–Co–P coating process is modified by replacing the conventional sensitization and activation steps by only using activation step with [Ag(NH 3) 2] + activator. The cenosphere particles are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) during and after the coating process. Relatively uniform coating is obtained under the given coating conditions. The possible mechanism of electroless Ni–Co–P coating of cenosphere particles utilizing [Ag(NH 3) 2] + activator is suggested. The low density Ni–Co–P-coated cenosphere particles may be utilized for manufacturing conducting polymers for EMI-shielding application and microwave absorbing materials.