Studies of Electroless Copper Plating on Poplar Veneer

Abstract

Copper coating was deposited on poplar veneer using different relative concentrations of plating solution. The coating structure, thickness, crystal structure, surface resistivity, contact angle, surface free energy, and electromagnetic shielding effectiveness were investigated. The surface morphology and thickness were observed using scanning electron microscopy, and the crystal structure was analyzed using X-ray diffraction. Increasing the relative concentration of plating solution resulted in a uniform and dense coating structure, and the thickness notably increased. In addition, the lateral direction resistivity was two times greater than the longitudinal direction resistivity, and the surface wettability changed from hydrophilic to hydrophobic, which led to a decline in surface free energy. Electromagnetic shielding effectiveness reached 62 dB in the frequency range of 10 kHz to 1.5 GHz. The electroless plating copper veneer was optimal when the solution contained 80 g/L of CuSO4·5H2O, 20 g/L of C4O6H4KNa, 40 g/L of EDTA-2Na, and 40 mL/L of HCHO 40 mL/L.

Keywords

• Contact angle
• Plating copper
• Surface free energy
• Relative concentration
• Electromagnetic shielding effectiveness