Synergism of Saccharum Officinarum, Nicotiana Tobaccum and Ananas Comusus Extract Additives on the morphological structure and Quality of Electroplated Zinc on Mild Steel

Synergism of the combined Saccharum Officinarum (sugar cane), Nicotiana Tobaccum (tobacco) and Ananas Comusus (pine apple) extract additives on the surface morphology and quality of electroplated zinc on mild steel in acid chloride solution was investigated at ambient temperature (~28oC). The experiments were performed at different plating time (15 and 18 min), additive concentrations (2, 2.5, 3 ml/50ml of acid chloride solution), pH5, temperature (27-30oC), current (0.08A) and voltage (13 V DC) conditions. Zinc electroplating on mild steel was performed using a DC – supply. Examination of the steel plated surface was performed with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) for surface elemental composition analysis. Different surface characteristics were obtained depending upon the concentration of the additive and the plating time. The corrosion resistance of the plated surface was determined by weight loss method. Surface morphology of the plated surface indicated a good electroplating that was better than either of the extracts alone. The electroplating process was sensitive to changes in additive concentration and plating time as any variation in the plating parameter produced a new and different surface crystal morphology