Electroless composite coating of Ni-P-carbon nanotubes on magnesium powder

The high tendency of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for agglomeration makes their uniform dispersion as reinforcement in bulk metal matrix composites a great challenge. A promising new way is introduced in this paper whereby CNTs are uniformly deposited on metallic particles which can be used later for production of CNT reinforced bulk metal matrix composites. In this study, for the first time, composite coatings of Ni-P-CNT were successfully co-deposited on magnesium powder through electroless plating method. Effects of such processing parameters as pH, temperature and CNT content were studied and suitable coating conditions were identified. The results showed a good distribution of individual CNTs in the composite coating and minimal coating separation produced under suitable electroless coating conditions. The Ni-P-CNT coated magnesium powder could be used as the feedstock for production of bulk magnesium nano-composites. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.