Effect of Current Density and Bath Temperature to The Corrosion and Wear Behaviour of Tungsten Carbide - Nickel Electrodeposition Coating

The composite (ceramic-metal) coating has become a desired coating due to its higher wear and corrosion behaviour compares to metal coating only. This study focuses on the effect of the deposition parameter which is the current density and bath temperature on the corrosion and wear behaviour of the coating. As the current density and temperature will affect the movement of the electron during deposition, it is important to evaluate its effect on the coating thickness and its wear and corrosion performance. The mild steel was used as the substrate and nickel-tungsten carbide (Ni-WC) as the coating. Watts’s bath was used as an electrolyte with the addition of 25 g/l WC. 0.2 A/cm2 and 0.5 A/cm2 has been chosen as the current density while 30 °C and 50 °C as their temperature. The coating was characterised using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and x-ray diffractometer (XRD). Immersion test and weight loss test was used to evaluate the corrosion and wear behaviour respectively. The 3 g/l silicon carbide was used as abrasive materials in the wear testing. Vickers micro-hardness tester was used for hardness property evaluation. It is found that higher current density and higher bath temperature results in lower corrosion and wear rate which shows higher resistance.