Effects of Process Parameters and CrCl3 Concentration on the Structure, Surface Morphology, Composition and Corrosion Resistance of Electrodeposited NiCrP Amorphous Alloy Coatings

Herein, NiCrP amorphous alloy coatings were prepared on copper substrates by electrodeposition. The aim of this paper is to replace Cr6+ with Cr3+ to prepare NiCrP amorphous alloy coating, which can reduce environmental pollution. By studying the influence of pH, temperature (T), current density (DK), and CrCl3 concentration on the structure, surface morphology, composition, and corrosion resistance of the alloy coatings, the optimum bath formulation and process parameters were determined as follows: 25 g·L−1 NiSO4·6H2O, 100 g·L−1 CrCl3·6H2O, 20 g·L−1 NaH2PO2·H2O, 80 g·L−1 Na3C6H5O7·2H2O (sodium citrate), 40 g·L−1 H3BO3, 50 g·L−1 NH4Cl, 1 g·L−1 KF, 5 g·L−1 C7H5O3NS (saccharin), 0.05 g·L−1 C12H25SO4Na (sodium dodecyl sulfate), and 40 mL·L−1 HCOOH and T: 30 °C, DK: 15 A·dm−2, and pH: 3.5, respectively. NiCrP amorphous alloy coatings with high corrosion resistance were prepared under the abovementioned conditions. The crystal cells of the coating surface are uniform and fine. The corrosion resistance of the NiCrP amorphous alloy coatings was characterized by polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and an immersion corrosion test and compared with that of the NiP amorphous alloy coating. The results show that Ni91.9P8.1 and Ni83.5Cr8.3P8.2 corrosion potential and corrosion current density are −0.68, −0.44 V, and 36, 7 μA·cm−2 in 3.5 wt.% NaCl, respectively. With Ni91.9P8.1 and Ni83.5Cr8.3P8.2, the maximum weight loss is 61.67 and 15.42 mg·dm−2 in a 1 mol·L−1 HCl, respectively. The corrosion resistance of the NiCrP amorphous alloy coatings in 3.5 wt.% NaCl and 1 mol·L−1 HCl solutions is better than that of the NiP alloy coating.