Electrodeposited zinc/iron alloys of a semi-bright to lustrous appearance are desirable to provide a decorative plating appearance while simultaneously imparting excellent corrosion protection. Generally speaking, zinc/iron alloys can be deposited on a conductive substrate by means of a zinc/iron alloy electroplating bath. Such electroplating baths and the processes using them are employed to provide alloy deposits on a variety of substrates and are often used in conjunction with ferrous substrates, such as iron or steel.
The zinc/iron alloy plating baths and process of the present invention involve the use of a brightening additive which can be used in a wide variety of types of plating baths over broad pH and current density ranges to provide a semi-bright to bright zinc/iron alloy deposit. The plating baths of the present invention are commercially useful and are characterized, in part, by their flexibility and versatility in use to obtain excellent zinc/iron alloy plating results.
A further understanding of the present invention will be obtained from the following description and examples thereof. Unless otherwise indicated, in the following description and examples, all parts are percents by weight and all temperatures are in degrees Farenheit.