Explain electroplating with the help of an activity. Give suitable circuit diagram in support of your answer
Answers
Electroplating The most common application of electrolysis is electroplating. Electroplating is a process of coating one metal with another using an electric current. In this process, there exists an electrolyte, through which current passes. Two electrodes are inserted in the electrolyte and are connected to the terminals of a battery with a switch in between. The metal to be used for coating is chosen as the anode and the object to be electroplated is chosen as the cathode. The electrolyte is a salt of the anode metal which gets dissociated into its respective ions. The positive ions are called cations, and the negative ions are called anions. The current in the solution is due to the flow of these ions. The anions move towards the anode, and the cations move towards the cathode. The cations are converted into atoms at the cathode and form a layer on it, which we call electroplating. To compensate for the loss of ions in the solution, the atoms of the anode dissociate into the solution, forming the ions. When electric current passes through the circuit for 20-25 minutes, the metal from the anode gets deposited on the cathode. Electroplating is done in industries to have an anti-reactive coating on the parts of machines so that they do not react with the raw material, to have an anti-corrosive coating for the machines so that they do not get corroded, and to have a heat-resistive coating for parts like boilers to resist the heat produced by the machinery. Gold plating is one of the most common applications of electroplating in ornament-making.