There are different types of electroplating like
- Chromium Plating
- Gold and Silver Plating
- Tin Plating
- Zinc Plating
Let’s look at them one by one
Chromium Plating
It is done on different objects like car parts, bath taps, kitchen burners, bicycle handles
In this case, layer of chromium metal is deposited over other metal like iron/steel
Chromium helps in keeping material shiny and scratch free
Also there is no corrosion(metal is not damaged or get rust due to rain)
Why the whole product is not made of chromium?
Because it is a very expensive metal
So only layer is used of chromium and remaining is made of cheap metal like iron and steel
Gold Plating and Silver Plating
It is used in case of Jewellery
Coating of Gold and Silver is done so that it gives the appearance of gold and silver jewellery
It is much cheaper than making whole product of gold or silver
We can see that Gold Plated Jewellery is much more costlier than Gold Jewelry
Tin Plating
It is done in case of Cans which are used to store food
Cans are made of iron, coating is done of tin
it is because if iron reacts with food directly,food can get spoilt
Coating is done of tin to prevent food from getting spoilt
Zinc Plating
It is used in bridges and automobiles
They are made of iron
Coating of Zinc is done to prevent it from getting rust
Nickel Plating
Nickel plating is done on aluminium to make it look better
Summary of Different Types of Electroplating
|
Type of Coating |
Base Product |
Coating of |
Examples |
Why used |
|
Chromium coating |
Iron and steel |
Chromium |
Bicycle bells, Handlebars |
Chromium has shiny appearance and it does not corrode |
|
Tin coating |
Iron |
Tin |
Cans used for storing food |
Tin has shiny appearance, does not corrode and is non poisonous |
|
Gold plating |
Silver |
Gold |
Gold plated ornaments |
Goldmakes cheaper silver ornaments look attractive and expensive |
|
Nickel Plating |
Aluminium |
Nickel |
Aluminium articles |
Nickel is a shiny metal, it gives shiny appearance to dull looking aluminium articles. |
