Improved microhardness and wear resistance of the as-deposited electroless Ni–P coating

The coatings with different phosphorus contents were obtained by varying the ratio of lactic acid to acetic acid in the electroless plating bath. With the increase of phosphorus content, the structure of the electroless Ni–P coating transformed from nanocrystalline to a mixture of nanocrystalline and amorphous phases, then to amorphous phase. A record high hardness value of 910 HV0.1 of as-deposited Ni–P coating was obtained at 7.97 at.% phosphorus content, and high wear resistance was accordingly achieved. The refined nanocrystalline grains with an average size of ~ 4 nm were found to be responsible for the record high hardness and improved wear resistance of the as-deposited Ni–P coating.