Preparation and characterization of core-shell PS/Ni composite microspheres

PS/Ni microspheres were prepared by electroless nickel plating on PS microspheres. Several parameters for plating were optimized in order to obtain integrated and uniform nickel coatings. The properties of obtained composite microspheres, such as chemical composition and crystal texture of the coating, mechanical property, density, and magnetism, were characterized by SEM, EDS, XRD, and VSM. It was revealed that several parameters, such as thiourea dosage, reaction temperature, and load, had significant influence on fabrication of integrated and homogeneous nickel shell. It was also demonstrated that the properties of the PS/Ni microspheres, such as nickel weight ratio, density, and magnetism, can be tuned by adjusting the load. POLYM. COMPOS., 30:1098-1105, 2009.