AnAspiringChemist
Harmless
Posts: 7
Registered: 23-7-2015
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood
|
|
Copper Plating Materials
Hello all,
I have a question regarding copper plating an iron nail. I read that if you squirt some lemon juice into a bowl and add pennies to it and add an iron
nail, the copper will plate the nail. Can someone please explain what's going on in the atomic level? Also, by adding more pennies will the nail have
more copper?
Can other materials be plated using this method or only iron nails?
Thanks!
|
|
|
AnAspiringChemist
Harmless
Posts: 7
Registered: 23-7-2015
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood
|
|
will someone please reply?
|
|
|
gdflp
Super Moderator
Posts: 1320
Registered: 14-2-2014
Location: NY, USA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Staring at code
|
|
Patience is important when you're asking for help.
I don't see how that could work, unless you add the copper, wait for a few days, and then add the nails. In that case, the copper reacts with the
citric acid from the lemon juice and oxygen from the air to form a solution of cupric citrate. When a nail is added, a metathesis reaction occurs and
the copper plates out while the iron dissolves forming a solution of ferrous and ferric citrate and leaving metallic copper behind. If the citric
acid and iron are in excess and there is enough exposed iron metal, then adding more copper will result in more copper plating out. Materials can
only be plated with this method if the element is above copper on the reactivity series.
|
|
|
MeshPL
Hazard to Others
Posts: 329
Registered: 20-4-2015
Location: Universe
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood
|
|
Maybe you forget tk electrolyse the solution? Connect positive side to pennies and negative to nail.
Obtaining good results is harder though...
|
|
|
![[*]](images/xpblue/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
