To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org, RGod2 AT aol.com
Cc:
Subject: [Homestead] Making jewelry, electroplting it.
Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2005 14:56:33 -0500
tvoivozhd---I wouldn't ever voluntarily wear jewelry---not even military
class ring when flying military aircraft---considered it a very good way
to lose a finger in bailing out or in my numerous crashesl
Which is not to say it is isn't a good business---I made the tooling for
coin bracelets and got the cost of chromium and gold plating down to
such a ridiculous level that my partner Karl Holston and I had to make
money in a corner of his welding shop. Had some beautiful literature
that we got cheap too---must still have a few copies still around and a
few bracelets too.
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Electroplating
Student's name: Bob
Grade: 10th
School: Outside of USA
Category: Physical_Science.Chemistry
Expert: Mark G. Forbes
> i need to electroplate a leaf with silver. I needto know how to
> electroplate carbon or graphite on to the leaf before i electroplate the
> silver please help!!!! Need reply within 2 days
I presume that the leaf is relatively stable, so it can withstand modest
amounts of handling. I think I'd experiment with a sooty flame, maybe
like that produced by burning acetylene or "moth balls" in air. I don't
know if you'll be able to coat the leaf with soot without setting it on
fire in the process, but it's worth a try. Use a "test leaf" to get
your technique right, before you do it with the "real" one. You won't
be electroplating the carbon....that's just applied as a coating
mechanically
to provide a conductive surface, then the silver is electroplated over it.
Another substance you might try is copy machine toner. It's mostly carbon
black, with a plastic binder. You might find that just dipping your leaf in
the toner (you can use the waste stuff from the copier) will work. Again,
test it out on something first.
Your local electroplating shop may have some other ideas, and if you've got
a university nearby you should see if they have an electron microscopy
department; those folks generally have to coat their samples with a
conductive
surface before they can use their microscope, and they have ways of doing
this. If your leaf is still fresh, freezing it solid first may make it
easier
to work with.
Warning---most plating chemicals are very dangerous---wear protective
clothing and be supercareful---vent room AND DON,T BREATHE THE FUMES.
Difference in Plating
Understanding the Difference Between Brush and Tank Plating
Brush plating is a very useful and portable method of plating. Many
different types of metals or alloys can be applied over another metal.
Our company makes far more solutions available in brush plating
chemicals then tank plating due to the large demand of our customers. In
a brush plating set-up we can work with lower powered rectifiers and
much less chemicals then in a tank plating set-up. Larger pieces can be
plated at a lower investment money wise and a smaller work area is
needed. Basically it doesn’t matter how large the piece is, since it
will plate wherever we touch the wand to the work surface. Tough jobs
can be done easily since we do not have to disassemble most jobs. Car
parts can be plated right on the auto without dismantling the car. This
is how the gold emblems on cars are done. The emblems are never removed
from the car to be plated. It doesn’t matter if we touch the paint on
the car as the paint does not conduct electricity so the paint will not
plate. Guns are much easier to plate this way as there is no worry of
the insides getting rusty from submerging them in solutions. If you have
two conductive surfaces close to each other and you only want to plate
one of them, the plating will only occur on the surface that you contact
with the wand. If it is impossible to plate one area without touching
the surrounding areas then you can mask off the area with tape or nail
polish or the such. In brush plating the solution is all used up and
therefore you do not have a disposal problem like in tank plating. It is
considered environmentally friendly.
The theory of Brush plating is simple. The rectifier supplies a negative
charge to the work piece and a positive charge to a hand held wand which
has the anode attached to the end of it. The anode is covered with an
absorbent material which holds the plating solution. The anode can
either be dipped in the solution or in some large jobs the solution is
constantly pumped up to the area being plated. The anode is then applied
to the work piece by the operator, or the work piece can be moved under
the anode, such as a moving shaft. The movement will apply even plating
on the entire area being plated. Plating occurs only where the anode
contacts the work piece.
Advantages of Brush plating: Lower initial cost to start. Portability,
the equipment can be moved to the worksite. Ease of operation. Permits
the plating of parts too large for a tank. Reduces the amount of
masking. Reduces waste disposal. And don’t let the word brush fool you,
you can’t leave any brush marks since the metal is electrically
deposited on the work piece.
In a tank plating set-up we must have a tank of sufficient size to hold
the work piece with room for the anodes and at least 3 to 4 inches of
space on each side. Jewelry and small car parts are a good example of
items that take well to tank plating, and the tanks can be as small as
one quart size in some cases. In electroforming which is the plating of
non-conductive items, a tank system must be used first to apply the
copper over the conductive paint. A tank has the advantage of being able
to build-up thicker plating without you being there or doing any labor
during this step. With most solutions the anodes must be equal to or
greater than the work piece. If we use anodes of the same metal as the
solution then basically the solution goes on but the anodes dissolve and
must be replaced. When using stainless steel anodes the metal is used
out of the solution but the anodes don’t wear out. The solution is then
replaced.
Advantages of tank plating: Easier plating of complex shapes. In most
cases multiple parts can be plated at one time. In electroforming the
copper must be tank plated over the conductive coating. In some of the
tank solutions the brighteners, which are chemical additives can save
you some of the time and labor of polishing. The pieces plate out bright.
Similarities in the two types of plating: The finished product is the
same if the plating is done properly. In our showroom you can not tell
the difference between the two. They are both deposited on the work
piece and electrically bonded just the method of applying it is
different. In tank plating the thickness is determined by how long you
leave the item in the tank to plate. In Brush plating the thickness is
determined by how many times you go over the surface of the work piece.
Differences in the two types of plating: The plating chemicals used in
brush plating are much more concentrated than the solutions for tank
plating, therefore they are not interchangeable. In most cases there are
approximately 15 times more metal in them. It does make them more
expensive per ounce but they also cover much more area than tank
solutions. The nice part is that you don’t have to buy such large
quantities of solution to do the job. Also because of their
concentration the brush solutions can build-up thickness faster than
tank solutions.
Electroforming: In electroforming we start with a applied conductive
coating and plate with a special copper solution in a tank. The next
coatings can either be done in a tank or by brush plating but the first
plate of copper must be done in a tank.
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