# need help for making silver electrolyte



## nattawat (Jul 9, 2009)

I am making silver cell which I want to refine 1000 grams of stering silver. The silver cell can contain 5 liters of electrolyte. I do not know the ratio of silver nitrate, distill water and nitric acid. Moreover, I like to know if I do not have silver nitrate , can I use nitric acid mixing with distill water to make the silver electrolyte? because I think I have to put the impure silver at the anode side which will dissolve in the solution and it will make the solution to become silver nitrate. if it is possible, what is the ratio of nitric acid and distill water.

Nattawat L


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## goldsilverpro (Jul 9, 2009)

There's a lot of info on the forum about silver cells that you should read before considering this. It's not as easy as you obviously think it is. Also, I think it would be a waste of time and money for such a small amount as 1000 grams.

You have to start with silver in the solution. Since you are running sterling, I would suggest starting with at least 8 tr.oz./gal (66 gm/liter). Dissolve this in a MINIMUM amount of nitric acid. Excess nitric will cause problems. I also prefer starting with at least 16 gm/liter of copper in solution.

Sterling can be run in a silver cell, but it takes some expertise to do it. The problem is the 7.5% copper. For your 1000 grams, there are 75 grams of copper. When copper dissolves in the solution, it continually displaces the silver at the ratio of 3.4/1. The 75 gm of copper will displace a total of 255 gm of silver. Since the silver cell doesn't plate pure silver when the silver concentration is less than about 33 gm/liter, you will have to remove part of the solution, occasionally, and replace it with fresh 66 gm/liter silver nitate solution. Probably, about half of your 1000 grams will be tied up in solutions. 

Also, you should have a melting furnace, along with it's associated equipment, and you'll need a power supply that will provide the necessary amperage (about .03 to .05 amps per sq.cm. of anode area) at 3-4 volts.

Are you sure you really want to do this? Were it me, I would try 4metals' formate method for purifying the silver. Besides nitric, it only requires a few inexpensive chemicals. Read the entire thread, especially 4metals first 2 posts.
http://www.goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=1275&hilit=formate


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