Fabrication of a Ni/SiC composite coating on steel surface with excellent corrosion inhibition performance

A new hybrid process consisting of laser processing, nanoparticles self-assembly, and electrodeposition is proposed for creating a composite coating. Laser is used to prepare the basic surface microstructure. The microstructure provides the required micropores for the self-assembly of SiC nanoparticles. Furthermore, the top part of the microstructure provides the current channel for the electrodeposition of Ni coating. The microstructure can assist to change the surface wettability. To reduce the surface energy of the machined surface, it is exposed to air for a period of time, thereby changing the wettability of the surface to realize superhydrophobicity, which helps to resist corrosion. The corrosion rate of the surface microstructure with composite coating is found to be four orders of magnitude lower than that of a substrate that had only been polished. This surface also achieves a reduction of corrosion rate by two orders of magnitude compared with a surface microstructure with a single coating. The existence of the composite coating also improves the lifespan of the corrosion-resistant surface. The results of this study can serve as a reference for future work that combines anti-corrosion, composite coating, and processing methods.