Electroless Nickel Technical Papers and Research
In-Depth Articles and Studies on Electroless Nickel Technology
Ron Duncan served as Vice President of Palm International, Inc., where he led the company’s technical and educational initiatives. Prior to joining Palm, he was Director of Research at Elnic, Inc., focusing on electroless nickel formulation and materials research.
Before entering the metal finishing industry, Ron spent 12 years in the oil sector with Exxon and Caltex Petroleum Corporations, tackling materials and corrosion challenges. His work took him across the globe—including the United States, Middle East, Europe, South America, and Africa—where he developed a reputation for his deep expertise and practical problem-solving.
Ron held a BE in Mechanical and Metallurgical Engineering from Vanderbilt University. He was a Registered Professional Engineer and a certified Corrosion Specialist through NACE. A leader in technical standards, he chaired NACE task groups T-1G-19 and T-6A-53, contributing to authoritative reports on electroless nickel and other metallic coatings. He also served on the AESF’s Electroless Committee.
Throughout his distinguished career, Ron authored more than fifty technical papers on corrosion, coatings, and electroless nickel. His work appeared in Materials Performance, Plating and Surface Finishing, Metals Progress, Products Finishing, and Finishers Management, as well as in numerous industry conferences. He was the principal author of the electroless nickel chapter in Volume 5 of the Metals Handbook and was honored with the AESF Gold Medal in 1996 for the best paper published in Plating and Surface Finishing.
Ron also directed the Electroless Nickel School, a comprehensive four-day seminar presented by Palm, which educated professionals in all aspects of electroless nickel technology.
Ron Duncan passed away on December 15, 2006. He is deeply missed by his family, colleagues, and the broader surface finishing community. His legacy of innovation, mentorship, and integrity continues to inspire all who had the privilege of working with him.
WASTE TREATMENT PRACTICES IN THE ELECTROLESS NICKEL INDUSTRY
In the fall and winter of 1994 a survey was conducted to establish what the electroless nickel industry presently is doing to treat its different waste streams and the cost of this treatment. This paper describes the results of this survey and summarizes the waste treatment practices and costs in the electroless nickel industry today.
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Electroless Nickel and the End-Of-Life Vehicle Directive
In 2000, the European Union began banning lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium from automobiles with their End-Of-Life Vehicle (ELV) directive. This paper will discuss this issue, as well as alternative technologies for lead and cadmium free coatings.
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CORROSION RESISTANCE OF ELECTROLESS NICKEL FOR PETROLEUM PRODUCTION OPERATIONS
Recent experience has shown functional Electroless Nickel to have exceptional resistance to corrosion and erosion in petroleum production. facilities. Details of test programs to establish the performance of these coatings in saline/CO2/H2S environments at temperatures up to 180 ° C are reported, together with actual experience with their use. Data is also presented on the effect of heat treatment on the corrosion of Electroless Nickel and on galvanic corrosion in oil field services. The effect of deposit quality and defects is also discussed.
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Electroless Nickel: Alternative to Chromium Coatings
Electroless nickel is an alloy of mckel and phosphorus normally used for functional, rather than decorative, applications. As deposited, the coating is a metallic glass, containing about 10.5% P dissolved in nickel and less than 0.05% other impurities. Unlike chromium and other electroplates, electroless nickel coatings are completely amorphous - they have no crystal structure and contain no internal segregation or separate phases.
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