Electroplating Platinum metals

Electroplated Metals and Alloys. The metals electroplated on a commercial scale from specially formulated aqueous solutions iaclude cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, gold, iadium, iron, lead, nickel, platinum-group metals, silver, tin, and ziac. Although it is possible to electroplate some metals, such as aluminum, from nonaqueous solutions as well as some from molten salt baths, these processes appear to have achieved Httie commercial significance. 

Smooth platinum, lead dioxide and graphite are anode materials commonly used in electrooxidation processes. All show large overpotentials for oxygen evolution in aqueous solution. Platinum coated titanium is available as an alternative to sheet platinum metal. Stable surfaces of lead dioxide are prepared by electrolytic oxidation of sheet lead in dilute sulphuric acid and can be used in the presence of sulphuric acid as electrolyte. Lead dioxide may also be electroplated onto titanium anodes from lead(Il) nitrate solution to form a non-porous layer which can then be used in other electrolyte solutions [21],... 

OTHER COMMENTS Platinum metal is used in the manufacture of apparatus used in laboratories and industries, including thermocouples, acid-proof containers, chemical reaction vessels, platinum resistance thermometers, electrodes, etc. has found applications in dentistry, electroplating industry, and in the jewelry industry soluble platinum salts have been used as catalysts in the production of high octane gasoline, vinylesters, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals platinum metals, as well as soluble platinum salts, have been employed as oxidation catalysts in the manufacture of sulfuric acid, nitric acid from ammonia, and acetic acid soluble platinum salts have been used and reused in the reclamation of platinum ore. 

A standard three-electrode cell equipped with an Ag/AgCl reference electrode and a platinum mesh or stainless steel counter electrode was used for the metal electroplating. Before immersing the polystyrene templates into the plating solution they were dipped into methanol to enable the infiltration of the hydrophobic meso-pores by the aqueous electrolyte. Subsequently, the samples were rinsed with deionized water, dried, and electively freed from the styrenic template by dissolution in toluene for several minutes. Platinum metal was deposited potentiostatically at room... 

In electroplating, the metallic object which is to be electroplated (that is, to be covered with a thin film of another metal) is made the cathode in an electrolytic cell. A solution with the ionic form of the metal is used as the electrolyte. Finally, as anode, either the metal which is being plated is used (soluble anode) or an insoluble anode made of carbon, platinum, titanium, lead or steel. 

Aqueous Electrodeposition. The theory of electro deposition is well known (see Electroplating). Of the numerous metals used in electro deposition, only 10 have been reduced to large-scale commercial practice. The most commonly plated metals are chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, rhodium, silver, cadmium, tin, and gold, followed by the less frequendy plated metals iron, cesium, platinum, and palladium, and the infrequendy plated metals indium, mthenium, and rhenium. Of these, only platinum, rhodium, iddium, and rhenium are refractory. 

Potassium cyanide is primarily used for fine silver plating but is also used for dyes and specialty products (see Electroplating). Electrolytic refining of platinum is carried out in fused potassium cyanide baths, in which a separation from silver is effected. Potassium cyanide is also a component of the electrolyte for the analytical separation of gold, silver, and copper from platinum. It is used with sodium cyanide for nitriding steel and also in mixtures for metal coloring by chemical or electrolytic processes. 

The most widely used methods for the application of coatings of gold, silver and the platinum group metals (platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium, osmium) to base metals are mechanical cladding and electroplating. 

Our approach utilized the metals gold, platinum, then later gold, platinum, and nickel electroplated in succession because the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide reaction we tested was most efficiently catalyzed with platinum.After fabrication of the nanowires they were freed by removing the conductive silver backing with nitric acid and the sacrificial template with a strong base, sodium hydroxide. Then nanorods were washed with deionized water and ultracentrifuged to achieve a neutral pH. 

Rhodium is one of the six platinum transition elements that include Ru, Rh, Pd, Os, Ir, and Pt. Of these metals, rhodium has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity. Although a relatively scarce metal, rhodium makes an excellent electroplated surface that is hard, wears well, and is permanently bright— ideal for plating the reflectors in automobile headlights. 

Electroplating is achieved by passing an electric current through a solution containing dissolved metal ions as well as the metal object to be plated. The metal object acts as a cathode in an electrochemical cell, attracting metal ions from the solution. Ferrous and nonferrous metal objects are typically electroplated with aluminum, brass, bronze, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, nickel, tin, and zinc, as well as precious metals such as gold, platinum, and silver. Common electroplating bath solutions are listed in Table 7-1. 

METAL ANODES] (Vol 16) in electroplating [ELECTROPLATING] (Vol 9) platinum-group metals as [PLATINUM-GROUP METALS] (Vol 19) use in electroplating [ELECTROPLATING] (Vol 9)... 

---