# Gold Plating ?



## Noxx (Dec 12, 2007)

Hello,
I'm just curious to know how to plate items... I don't want to use cyanides... Is it possible ?

Thanks


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## goldsilverpro (Dec 13, 2007)

Plating is a vast subject. Probably larger than refining. Here's an amateur plating forum that I post at. You need to register. Check out the photo section to see the setups.
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/Electroplating/?yguid=279792785

Here's more of a pro forum, but they have amateur sections.
http://www.finishing.com/Letters/index.html

There are cyanide substitutes, but I would guess they are not as good, when it comes to gold plating. Most base metal plating is non cyanide. What metals do you want to deposit? What type parts? New parts or old parts?


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## rockhammer53 (Feb 28, 2008)

Selrex makes an excellent non-cyanide plating solution...but like most commercial products... it's very expensive. I used it to plate items for prototyping photocells. Smooth Au over Ti adheasion layer on a ceramic substrate. Photomasked and multiple etchback for circuit. My electroplating notebook weighs about 7 pounds...handwritten notes and photocopies. It is a VERY extensive field and full of ideas, theories and at times... pure BS. :wink:


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## Lino1406 (Feb 29, 2008)

Gives less than 1 micron vs. many.
Which metal you want to plate?


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## rockhammer53 (Feb 29, 2008)

There seems to be some confusion between electroplating and electrowinning... in this forum, electrowinning would seem to be the appropriate method. current density and surface area are not as critical nor is DC power source for electrowinning as it is a gross process anyway.

The Selrex formula used was able to plate from 2 angstroms to 2mm depending on many factors including time, current, bath temp and method of sparging.

BTW, I've been doing this since 1977.


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## goldsilverpro (Feb 29, 2008)

Welcome, Rockhammer,

I was the senior chemist for Sel-Rex West in the late '60's - early '70's. Of course, that was before the more modern cyanide replacement baths came in. We did have non-cyanide, sodium gold sulfite baths at the time. Their tradename was BDT (Bright, Ductile, Temperature resistant). We also had a line of jeweler's color golds based on a phosphate formula.

Electrowinning is the electrolytic winning of metal from a solution in which the metal has been previously dissolved.

Electrorefining is the dissolving of impure anodes and the subsequent depositing of pure metal at the cathode.

Electroplating is the electrolytic deposition of a metal on a metallic or non-metallic substrate for decorative or technical reasons.

All 3 require a somewhat exacting formulation, in order to produce a sound, usable deposit at the cathode.


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## rockhammer53 (Mar 5, 2008)

I really like the chemistry of the Selrex solutions and nice to know someone else has a moderating influence on the forum. Some of the ideas are a bit over the top but all in all a great place for carefully thought out suggestions.


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