Properties of Jet electrodeposition Nickel Coating on TC4 Alloy Prepared by Selective Laser Melting

In order to solve the problems of poor surface wear resistance and low hardness of titanium alloy materials formed by selective laser melting (SLM) technology, a new method of preparing bright nickel protective coating by jet electrodeposition was proposed in this paper. The surface morphology of the coatings was characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy. The microhardness tester, scratch tester, and friction and wear tester were used to analyze the adhesion, hardness, and wear resistance of the coatings. The results indicated that the current density has an important effect on the properties of the coatings; as the current density increases, the surface flatness gradually increases and then decreases. When the current density is 120 A/dm(2), the microhardness of the coatings reaches 548 HV, and the adhesion strength also reaches 30.4 N. Compared with the surface of titanium alloy, the surface of the coating has better wear resistance, and the surface is more complete after friction and wear test. The wear mechanism is transformed from microscopic grinding to smearing.