With the rapid development of modern industries, the surface quality and performance of metals need to be improved. Composite electrodeposition (co-deposition) has evolved as an important technique for improving the surface performance of metal materials. Herein, a new type of graphene oxide (GO)-reinforced nickel-boron (Ni-B) composite coating was successfully prepared on a 7075 aluminum (Al) alloy by co-deposition. Characterization revealed a significant improvement in the mechanical and anti-corrosion properties of the composite with the incorporation of GOs. The composite showed a rougher, compact, cauliflower-like morphology with finer grains, a higher hardness (1532 HV), a lower rate of wear (5.20 × 10-5 mm3∙N-1∙m-1), and a lower corrosion rate (33.66 × 10-3 mm∙y-1) compared with the Ni-B alloy deposit (878 HV, 9.64 × 10-5 mm3∙N-1∙m-1, and 116.64 × 10-3 mm∙y-1, respectively). The mechanism by which GOs strengthen the Ni-B matrix is discussed.
Keywords: Ni-B-GO; electrodeposition; graphene oxide; properties; strengthening mechanism.