The prospect application of nickel foam

Ni foam is a high-purity metal foam material produced from nickel through a special electrochemical process.It features a three-dimensional, open-hole structure that offers excellent corrosion resistance and good processing capabilities, such as cutting, bending, and welding.

Ni foam has high filtration precision, good gas permeability, high mechanical strength, high material utilization rate, and is suitable for high working temperatures, thermal shock resistance, and resistance to rust, acid, and alkali corrosion. It is widely used in catalysts, fuel cells, electromagnetic shielding materials, electrode materials, transportation, construction engineering, and other fields.

There are three methods for preparing nickel foam: dip plating, chemical nickel plating, and vacuum nickel plating. The chemical nickel plating method is the most commonly used. It involves several steps, including raw material preparation, conductive treatment, electroplating, roasting, reduction, and annealing. This method is advantageous due to its technical maturity, ease of operation, and simple equipment. The production method for nickel foam yields uniform pores and excellent corrosion resistance. With advancing technology, the nickel foam industry is expected to experience rapid development.

Nickel foam is usually composed of nickel metal and an adulterant, which account for almost 70% of its production cost. Single-quality nickel metal is highly temperature-resistant, ductile, and mechanically strong, making it widely used in industry. China has low reserves of nickel minerals, with the main producing areas concentrated in Jilin, Gansu, Qinghai, and Xinjiang. China is one of the world's major importers of nickel metal. Due to the shortage of raw materials and high production costs, the nickel foam market has a relatively low proportion. However, the industry has great potential for development.

Nickel foam has a wide range of applications in various fields, including the fuel cell industry where it can be used as a solid oxide fuel cell, proton exchange membrane fuel cell, bipolar plate modification material for molten carbonate fuel cell, and electroscope catalytic. Nickel foam is a popular electrode material for electronic devices like mobile phones and tablets. Its demand is increasing, leading to the expansion of the nickel foam industry. According to '2023-2028 China Nickel Foam Industry Market Deep Research and Development Prospect Forecast Report' by The New Civic Industry Research Center, the global nickel foam market size reached $290 million in 2022, with a year-on-year growth of 6.2%.
The leading nickel bubble companies worldwide are Sumitomo Metal Mine Co., Ltd., NITECH, and INCO. In China, there is intense market competition among numerous nickel foam production enterprises. Major Chinese producers of nickel foam include Corun, Tengerhui Electronics, Love Sky, Tianyu Technology, and Sanhe Materials.

Industry analysts have stated that nickel foam, as a new type of foam metal, has excellent performance and broad application prospects in many high-tech fields. However, the high production cost of nickel foam in China, caused by the shortage of raw materials and other factors, has resulted in a relatively low market share. Despite this, the industry still has significant potential for development. As local enterprises improve their technological maturity, China's nickel foam industry will continue to grow.