NIPHOS® 964 / 964 HS Nickel Phosphorus Electrolyte

NIPHOS® 964 is an acidic plating solution used to deposit Nickel-Phosphorus alloy coatings in rack or barrel systems. By adjusting the make-up composition and operating conditions, the solution is also suitable for high-performance systems, NIPHOS® 964 HS.

NIPHOS® 964 / HS enables electroplating of bright Nickel-Phosphorus deposits with extremely low tensile stress to slightly compressive stress. As a result, the coating is virtually crack-free and provides very high corrosion resistance.

The solution is chloride-free, boric acid-free, and ammonia-free. Apart from Nickel, it does not contain heavy metals such as Lead or Cadmium and is RoHS compliant. The phosphorus content in the deposit ranges from 6–13%. Operating conditions can be adjusted to achieve more than 10.5% phosphorus. The deposit hardness reaches approximately 550 HV 0.05 in the as-plated condition.

When combined with hard chrome, NIPHOS® can reduce the required chrome layer thickness, thereby reducing the use of Cr⁶⁺ while improving the overall coating properties. In addition, the NIPHOS® 964 / HS coating can replace high-phosphorus electroless Nickel-Phosphorus coatings, eliminating the disadvantages of that process without reducing performance.

Combining NIPHOS® with hard gold allows gold savings in contact applications.

Solution characteristics
Solution type: Acidic
Metal content: Rack and barrel systems: 40 (30 – 50) g/L Ni; 20 (15 – 25) g/L P; High-performance systems: 60 (55 – 75) g/L Ni; 20 / 30 / 40 g/L P
pH value: 2.3 (2.0 – 2.4)
Operating temperature: Rack and barrel systems: 50 (40 – 50) °C; High-performance systems: 60 (55 – 65) °C
Current density range, high-performance systems: 10 – 45 A/dm²
Current density range, rack plating: 4 A/dm²
Current density range, barrel plating: 1.5 A/dm²
Plating rate: Rack plating: 0.33 μm/min at 4 A/dm²; Barrel plating: 0.06 μm/min at 1.5 A/dm²; High-performance systems: depending on equipment and operating parameters

Coating characteristics
Coating: Nickel-phosphorus
Alloy composition: 87 – 94% Ni; 13 – 6% P
Deposit color: Stainless-steel color
Brightness: Slightly bright
Hardness: 550 – 600 HV 0.05 as-plated; up to 1,200 HV 0.05 after heat treatment, 400°C for 1 hour
Maximum coating thickness: >50 μm
Coating density: 7.8 – 8.5 g/cm³

Advantages
Extremely low tensile stress to slightly compressive stress
Very high crack resistance
Excellent corrosion resistance
RoHS compliant
Combined with hard chrome, it helps reduce Cr⁶⁺ usage
Can replace high-phosphorus electroless Nickel-Phosphorus coatings
Combined with hard gold, it helps save gold on contact surfaces
Longer bath life compared with electroless Nickel plating
Suitable for barrel, rack, and high-performance systems

Applications
Connectors
Smart cards
Leadframes
Hydraulic components