Ni nanocomposite films formed by Ni nanowires embedded in Ni matrix(Ni nanowire/Ni composite films)were fabricated by electrodeposition combined with supersonic stirring in a conventional Watts'bath containing Ni nanowires with diameter about 30 nm.The deposition temperature-dependent microstructure,crystal orientation,lattice constant and corrosion behavior of the Ni nanowire/Ni composite films were investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope,X-ray diffraction and potentiodynamic polarization tests,respectively.And the possible mechanism was discussed.It is found that to some extent,the deposition temperature has an impact on the microstructure,crystal orientation,lattice constant and corrosion property of the Ni nanowire/Ni composite films.The Ni nanowire/Ni composite films prepared at 50℃exhibit a novel inter-twisted-nanowire microstructure and have the best corrosion resistance.
In order to improve the accuracy and comparability of hardness and elastic modulus measurements in nanoin-dentation, an evaluation of the creep behavior and its influence on the mechanical properties of the electrode-posited nickel film has been conducted. The influence of loading time and hold period on the hardness and elastic modulus results at maximum load 5000 μN has also been examined. It is found that with increasing the loading time, the creep value is decreased. However, the creep value is increased when the hold period is increased. The elastic modulus results are more reliable if the hold period is longer. If the hold period is long enough, the loading time has no remarkable effect on the hardness and elastic modulus measured.
Nanocrystalline nickel films of 17-40 nm grain sizes were prepared using pulsejet electrodeposition. Structure, corrosion and lattice strain were analysed by transmission electron microscope, electrochemical workstation and X-ray diffraction, revealing that with decreasing of grain size, the lattice strain, corrosion rate of the films are enhanced. The observations can be consistently understood in terms of the bond-order-length-strength correlation mechanism indicating that the shortened and strengthened bonds between the under-coordinated atoms modify the energy density and the atomic cohesive energy in the surface skins of the grains. The surface energy density gain is responsible for the residual atomic cohesive energy for the activation energy of corrosion. Additionally, a novel algorithm was proposed to extract the elastic-plastic properties of nickel films and results that the nickel film has much higher yield strength than bulk nickel.
