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ABSTRACT
Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) is an engineering composites with excellent performance. The adhesion strength of nickel layer on CFRP composite was enhanced by pretreatment processes, including sandblasting and activation. The surface roughness, wettability, phase and microstructure of the CRFP and the layer were determined by surface profile-meter, goniometer, X-ray diffraction and scanning electronic microscopy, respectively. The adhesion force of nickel layer on CFRP composite was estimated by 3 M tape and pull-out test. The results showed that electroless nickel layer was composed of crystalline phase with small grain size, which belonged to medium-phosphorus deposits. The sandblasting improved the surface roughness and wettability of CFRP surface and rendered hydrophobic surface hydrophilic. The surface roughness of CFRP composites after sandblasting was enhanced by about 60.2%, at the same time the adhesion strength of the layer metalized CFRP composites after sandblasting was improved by 131%. After 3 M tape test, the adhesion state of nickel-CFRP composites with and without sandblasting could be qualitatively classified as grade 5B and 1B, respectively. The good adhesion of nickel layer on CFRP composite was generated from the increase in the surface roughness of CFRP composites after sandblasting and chemical activation, resulting in hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds. The lightning strike test showed that electroless nickel layer did not provide sufficient protection for the sandblasted CFRP composite when subjected to an big impulse current of up to 40 kA current peak and 8–20 μs duration due to the high electrical resistivity.
Acknowledgements
We thank Mr. Guang Yang from Analysis and Testing Center of Changzhou University, and Dr. Mengqi Cong from Jiangsu University of Technology for their help in XRD and SEM characterization of the deposits. At the same time, we appreciate Mr. Xuepeng Feng from Shanghai Leademc Electronics CO., LTD for his help in lightning strike tests. Ms. Jiaqi Huang thanks the funding of the Postgraduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (No. SJCX22_1429).
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/00218464.2022.2082870
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, WWP and DKX; methodology, DKX and WQQ; validation, DKX and QC; investigation, DKX; writing—original draft preparation, DKX; writing—review and editing, WWP, HJJ and HJQ; visualization, DKX and WWP; supervision, WWP; project administration, WWP. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.