INFLUENCE OF PULSE REVERSED CURRENT TECHNIQUE ON THE CRYSTALLINE ORIENTATION AND SURFACE-MORPHOLOGY OF NICKEL ELECTRODEPOSITS

The reversed current (RC) technique perturbs the nickel electrocrystallization process by modification of the adsorption-desorption phenomena occurring on the cathodic area and causes a radical change of the structural characteristics and properties of the deposits. The purpose of this work is to study the modifications occurring in the crystalline orientation and surface morphology of nickel deposits, prepared from an organic-free Watts bath, by application of the RC technique. The texture analysis of the deposits was realized by X-ray diffractometry and the surface morphology was studied by scanning electron microscopy techniques. It was observed that variation of the RC parameters results in a total modification of the texture and surface morphology of the deposited metal. The roughness of the metallic surface was also examined and conditions for the preparation of bright and smooth deposits were determined.