Nickel plating - application of nickel plating to the surface of products. Nickel adheres well to steel and its alloys, copper, zinc and aluminum. Worse - for products made of manganese, titanium, tungsten and molybdenum. Nickel plating gives the part a beautiful appearance, protects it from corrosion and increases wear resistance.
Necessary
- - sandpaper;
- - composition for degreasing;
- - sulfuric acid;
- - a suitable container for the electrolytic bath;
- - chromic anhydride;
- - lead plates - not less than 2;
- - car battery.
Instructions
Step 1
Prepare the item for nickel plating. Sand the surface thoroughly with sandpaper. If the nickel plating is for decorative purposes, polish the part to a mirror finish. Use a mixture of fine table salt and vinegar to clean copper and its alloys.
Step 2
Prepare one of the degreasing compounds. The first composition is slaked lime 35 grams per liter, caustic potassium - 10 grams per liter, liquid glass - 3 grams per liter of water. The second mixture - caustic soda or potassium - 75 grams per liter, liquid glass - 20 grams per liter of water. The third composition of the mixture is freshly slaked lime 350 grams per liter of water. Regardless of the prepared composition, the degreasing time should be at least 1 hour, the temperature of the mixture should be 90 degrees.
Step 3
After degreasing, rinse the part with warm water and prepare an electrolytic bath with sulfuric acid. To do this, in an enamel or glass container, dilute chromic anhydride in the amount of 400 grams per liter and concentrated sulfuric acid in the amount of 4 grams per liter of water. Bring the mixture temperature to 60 degrees. Place lead plates in the bath around the work piece and connect them to the positive terminal of the battery. Connect the product itself to the negative terminal. Important: the size of the lead plates should be 1.5-2 times larger than the nickel-plated part.
Step 4
Approximate time for nickel plating is 1-2 hours. After the end of the procedure, rinse the product thoroughly with warm water and wipe with a dry cloth or cloth. Perform additional polishing if necessary.
Step 5
If, for some reason, nickel plating in an electrolytic bath is not possible, use a different method. After completing the preparatory operations for grinding and degreasing the product, prepare a solution from a 10% solution of zinc chloride and nickel sulfate. The finished solution should have a deep green color. The nickel plating container should only be enameled. Bring the mixture to a boil and boil the part in it for 1-2 hours. Then rinse the product with chalk water (75 grams of chalk per liter of water) and wipe dry.
