Can you nickel-plate an object without electricity?
Sodium hypophosphite helps make electroless nickel plating possible. At a catalytic surface, it reduces dissolved nickel ions to metal. Some phosphorus enters the deposit, producing a nickel-phosphorus alloy.
Because deposition does not depend on electrical current distribution, complex shapes can be coated relatively uniformly.
A small phosphorus-containing ion thus enables nickel plating without an external current.
Global Chemical Database