Ultrasonically-assisted pulse electroplating for enhanced mechanical, tribological, and corrosion properties of Cu/SiC composite coating

This study aimed to investigate the microstructural characteristics, hardness, tribological performance, and corrosion resistance of a Cu+SiC composite coating. The coating was produced using ultrasonic-assisted pulse current electroplating on a stainless steel substrate. The addition of SiC nanoparticles with a 5% volume fraction to the plating solution. The incorporation of SiC nanoparticles into the Cu coating matrix resulted in a transition of the surface morphology from a cauliflower-like structure to a spherical structure. The composite coating demonstrated a 61% decrease in grain size relative to the pure Cu coating. The microhardness of the composite coating shown a 44% improvement relative to the pure Cu coating. Electrochemical evaluations revealed that the polarization resistance of the composite coating rose from 14819 to 61429 Ω.cm 2 . The Nyquist curves exhibited a comparable semicircular shape for both coatings, indicating a similar corrosion mechanism. The Nyquist test results, which corroborated the polarization findings, indicated that in the composite coating, the charge transfer resistance augmented by 328%, while the double-layer capacitance of the capacitor diminished from 2.9 × 10 -5 to 3.7 × 10 -6 . Tribological investigations demonstrated that the composite coating exhibited superior wear resistance compared to the pure Cu coating, which can be attributed to its enhanced hardness, the formation of a stable tribological layer, and a reduced friction coefficient. These improvements suggest the composite coating is highly suitable for applications requiring high wear and corrosion resistance, including protective layers for industrial machinery, electronic connectors, marine and automotive components, as well as biomedical implants.