jonco
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Palladium activator for electroless nickel
Hi,
I made a solution of tin chloride (1g tin(II) chloride with 4ml 38% HCL. Made up to 100ml with DI water). Color is translucent light yellow.
I made a second solution of palladium activator(0.02g with 0.8ml 38% HCL. Made up to 100ml with DI water). Colour is translucent light orange.
I soaked a strip of clear polyester plastic in the tin solution for 2 mins, and then straight to the palladium solution for 1min, but nothing happens.
I thought palladium was supposed to be formed on the plastic and the strip would turn brown.
I soaked the strip in the nickel plating solution, but again nothing happens.
Can anyone help?
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jonco
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The tin chloride I'm using is Tin (II) Chloride Hemihydrate (SnCl2.½H2O). The solution is clear with a slight yellowish tint.
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dann2
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I think there is a book in the Library on electroless plating is it's any use
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jonco
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I had a look in the library beforehand, but couldn't find anything regarding palladium activation troubleshooting.
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Xenoid
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Hi jonco - I don't really know much about this, but wouldn't you need to use a surfactant (wetting agent) to get the tin (II) chloride to adhere to
the polyester plastic.
What happens when you try other materials than polyester plastic?
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jonco
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Hi Xenoid,
I prepared the plastic surface by soaking it in an alkaline potassium permanganate solution for 5mins to wet the surface of the plastic. I tested it
with water and the water forms a thin film indicating the surface has been wetted. Maybe I need to use a proper cationic or anionic surfactant? Would
I need to mix the surfactant into the acidic tin(II) chloride solution?
I tried acetate plastic as well, and that didn't work either.
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Xenoid
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To tell the truth, I had never even heard of electroless nickel plating until I read your post. How is this palladium activation system supposed to
work!
I can understand the tin (II) chloride reducing the nickel solution and plating out nickel metal.
Do you need to let the tin (II) coating dry first, what stops it washing straight off?
What happens if you skip the "palladium activation" step?
It all sounds quite interesting, are you using a commercial nickel solution or other kit?
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jonco
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The tin chloride adsorb onto the plastic surface, and the palladium ions are bound by the tin chloride. The palladium chloride is supposed to be
reduced to palladium which the nickel will plate onto.
I tried skipping the tin(II) chloride step or the palladium activation step, with no result.
I'm using a commercial nickel solution from Caswell (http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/electroless.htm)
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Xenoid
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Just had a look at the Caswell site. Wouldn't you be better off posting on the forum they have there?
Sorry to be not much help 
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jonco
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I wasn't able to get much help from them.
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Fleaker
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Try finishing.com and search palladium seeders. Ought to be something.
Neither flask nor beaker.
"Kid, you don't even know just what you don't know. "
--The Dark Lord Sauron
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dann2
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Book
Hello,
The book below is available somewhere in the bowels of ref section, or someone there can give you a link. It may be useful, it may not be useful
Electroless Plating :
Fundamentals
And Applications
Glenn 0. Mallory
Juan B. Hajdu
Editors
The table of contents is attached. I cannot post book as I am bandwidth limited.
Dann2
Attachment: 12777_toc.pdf (45kB)
This file has been downloaded 896 times
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Xenoid
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Electroless Plating - Fundamentals and Applications
It's in the "New Books - Inorganic Chemistry" thread. In References by User: matei
http://www.sciencemadness.org/talk/viewthread.php?tid=9824#p...
But the link is broken;
http://mihd.net/azw0f7
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Nitrous2000
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"You're not allowed to access this file" is the response from the board and the second link is to a BS phishing site
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