Woods’ Nickel Contamination
Our Wood’s nickel strike bath is contaminated with iron.
Question:
Our Wood’s nickel strike bath is contaminated with iron. Will dummy plating of the bath remove the excess iron? If not, what else can you suggest to remove the iron? S. M.
Answer:
Classically, most people did not have much success with dummying Wood’s nickel plating baths. Dummying will slow the build-up of iron but ultimately the plater was faced with removing part of the bath and reconstituting the remainder of the bath. Today, you can set up an anion ion exchange system that cannot only handle the iron but other heavy metals as well. Vendors of ion exchange equipment can be found at www.pfonline.com/suppliers.html.
You should also review your process and see if you can reduce iron build-up by changing your process.
Related Content
-
A Chromium Plating Overview
An overview of decorative and hard chromium electroplating processes.
-
Innovation in Plating on Plastic
Plating on advanced plastics solution offers improved adhesion, temperature resistance and cost savings.
-
How to Choose Between Sulfate and Chloride-Based Trivalent Chromium
There are several factors to consider when choosing between sulfate and chloride-based baths for trivalent chromium plating. Mark Schario of Columbia Chemical discusses the differences and what platers should keep in mind when evaluating options.
