Question

What is electroplating?How are steel spoon plated with silver?Explain.

Answer 1

Dear Student
 

Uuse of the electrolytic cells is the electroplating of silver, gold, etc. Electroplating produces is a very thin coating of expensive metals on surfaces of cheaper type metals generally, to give the appearance, the chemical resistance of expensive ones.

silver plating, the object which one to be plated (e.g. spoon) is from the cathode of the electrolytic cell. The anode is bar of silver metal,the electrolyte is a solution silver cyanide, AgCN, in the water. When a current is passed throughout the cell, positive silver ion (Ag+) from silver cyanide migrate to negative anode (spoon), where they are neutralized by electrons and stick to the spoon as silver metal:

 

Meanwhile,silver anode bar gives up electrons and become silver ions:

 

Thus, anode bar gradually dissolved to replenish the silver ion in the solution. The result is silver metal has transferred from anode to cathode, in the case the spoon.The process continues upto the desired thickness is built on the spoon.

Answer 2

Here is your answer

The process of depositing a thin layer of any superior metal over an object of a cheaper metal, with the help of electric current is called electroplating.
For example; deposition of silver on brass or copper objects and that of copper, nickel, chromium etc., on objects made of iron is done by electroplating.

The experimental set up for electroplating copper on any object, such as a metallic spoon can be summarised here;

-The object to be electroplated, say iron spoon is made cathode(-ve electrode).

- A thin sheet of pure silver is made anode (+ve electrode).

-An acidified solution of silver cyanide(AgCN) is used as the electrolytic solution.

When electricity is passed through the solution, (AgCN), (Ag+) ions moves towards the anode and get reduced to silver metal. The silver metal gets electroplated on the object,i.e, metallic spoon.

The silver ions (Ag2/4+) moves towards
cathode. Here (Ag2/4+) ions do not get oxidised to Ag2+ ions. These silver ions (Ag2+) ions go into the solution. As a result of this reaction at the anode, concentration of (Ag2+) in the solution is maintained.

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