6. Comparison with nickel-phosphorus coatings

As mentioned above, electroless nickel deposits fall into three main categories: pure nickel (not widely used), nickel-boron – the subject of this article –, and nickel-phosphorus, which currently account for around 90% of the world market. The production processes for these three types of deposit differ in terms of the choice of reductant used in the bath and their respective working conditions. Their properties, on the other hand, differ according to the type of deposit, and even, for the same type of deposit, according to the additive content (in the case of nickel-phosphorus coatings).

Table 2 summarizes the main properties of Ni-P and Ni-B coatings according to their nature, without and with heat treatment.

The tribological and mechanical properties of nickel-boron coatings...