Structure, microstructure and corrosion properties of brush-plated Cu-Ni alloy

Cu-Ni alloy coatings on copper substrate by the brush-plating process have been investigated using XRD and AFM. The X-Ray diffraction analysis revealed that the brush-plated Cu-Ni alloy was heterogeneous and composed of cubic Cu3.8Ni phases. Uniform surface coverage of the substrate by granular morphology was observed from AFM. The corrosion protection performance of the brush-plated Cu-Ni alloy on copper substrate has been assessed using electrochemical corrosion tests. These results indicated a high charge transfer and low I (corr) for the alloy system compared with copper deposits and the copper substrate.