INTA Technologies Corporation 2281 Calle de Luna, Santa Clara, CA 95054 || Tel: 408-748-9955 || Fax: 408-727-3027 || contact@intatech.com

 

 

ELECTROLESS PLATING

 

 

 

Table of Contents

 

 

 

What is meant by the term electroless plating?

Electroless mean autocatalytic. Autocatalytic plating baths contain reducing agents ready to react with the substrate. The catalyst is the metal to be deposited. The reaction is completed when hydrogen is released by the reducing agent. A common reducing agent is sodium hypophosphite. Oxidation occurs and the result is a negative charge on the surface of the substrate.

 

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When was electroless plating invented?

1946 by Brenner and Riddell (United States).

 

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How does electroless plating compare to electrolytic plating?

Electroless plating is well suited for parts with complex geometries and/or many fine features. Electroless plating is generally more time consuming than electrolytic plating. The price difference is minimal.

 

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What about the quality of electroless plated finishes?

Electroless plated finishes are very common and widespread in many industries. INTA Technologies is ISO 9001:2000 certified and we provide CoC’s as standard practice. Before parts are plated they are inspected and logged. After a rigorous cleaning and plating process the parts are again inspected. XRF equipment is used to verify the coating thickness in most cases. Random samples are chosen and the data is reviewed by staff and stored for future reference. Copies of the XRF data analysis and report are available with shipments. Be sure to request the data when sending an RFQ or PO. We use very strict workmanship standards and reject parts at final inspection for discoloration, bubbles, poor adhesion, scratches or other reasons depending on the exact customer requirements and specifications.

 

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What is the maximum thickness INTA’s eless plating techniques can achieve?
For very thick coatings INTA prefers electrolytic deposit methods. In general, INTA’s eless coatings are not much thicker than .001-.005”. Average thicknesses are in the range of .00002-.0003”

 

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What materials can be electrolessly plated?

Most materials can be electrolessly plated. Some types of electroless plating methods are not well suited to specific substrates due to temperature and other restraints. Send information regarding your application to contact@intatech.com for feedback.

 

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Can plastic be plated using eless methods?

Yes.

 

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Does INTA Technologies offer electroless gold?

Eless gold is not an INTA Technologies specialty. It is a special order item best suited for large volume.

 

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What about electroless nickel?

INTA offers several varieties of electroless nickel. The most popular include:

Nickel boron

Nickel phos – mid

Nickel phos – high

Nickel Teflon

 

INTA does not offer Nickel cad (a.k.a. nickel cadmium).

 

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What metals does INTA plate electrolessly?

Our specialties are nickel and copper.

 

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What is the minimum coating thickness?

A typical minimum coating thickness would be approx .00001-.00002” for electroless nickel or copper. If there is no electrolytic top coat it is recommended to build above the minimum, at least .0001” or greater for improved appearance and other features.

 

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What is the average tolerance on coating thickness?

Average tolerances vary according to customer specifications. In general, tolerances range from +/- 15u” and up. +/- 100u” is preferred.

 

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What about uniformity of the coating?

Electroless plating provides a very uniform coating, especially in comparison to electrolytic plating.

 

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What is dog boning?

Non-uniform distribution forming a dog bone shape with thicker coating deposits at either end and a less thick coating in the center. Dog boning is not an important issue for electroless plating but can pose challenges for electrolytic plating projects.

 

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Can ID’s be plated with eless methods?

Yes.

 

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What is ENIG?

Electroless nickel immersion gold. It is a popular coating/surface finish.

 

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Does INTA offer ENIG?

INTA has a local and well-respected partner which offers ENIG. For information or a referral contact B.Kneedler, Manufacturing Engineer 408-748-9955 x113

 

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Does INTA specialize in prototypes or large volume?

Neither. INTA has a mix of small, medium and high volume orders.

 

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What is the largest item INTA can plate with eless processes?

Approx. 12-18” in length or width.

 

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Does INTA offer immersion plating?

No, but we can give a referral.

 

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What is the difference between immersion plating and electroless plating?

See http://www.finishing.com/184/71.shtml

 

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What is EN?

Electroless nickel.

 

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What are some common EN specs?

AMS 2404 Plating, Electroless Nickel
ASTM B733

MIL-DTL-32119
MIL-C-26074D

 

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I have some technical questions regarding my application. Who should I contact?

Contact:

Blake Kneedler, Engineering Estimator

2281 Calle de Luna

Santa Clara, CA 95054

 

408-748-9955 x113

408-727-3027 fax

 

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Are there any useful links?

http://www.answers.com/topic/electroless-nickel-plating?cat=technology

EN information

 

http://www.finishing.com/184/71.shtml

Immersion vs. electroless discussion.

 

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Last revised: 2 SEP 2008