Electro Stripping Silver Oxide From Silver Plated Materals to Get Silver Finish

In this instructible, i am using platinum wire on a fork that cost 60 dollars a strand an 9 volt battery supply or an DC 0-30 v, 0-2A power supply with Soap, ethanol, water, and sodium carbonate.

An optional chemical is trisodium citrate.

Warning: Ethanol is toxic and flammable; soap is irritating to the skin. Sodium carbonate is corrosive and toxic. Please wear gloves to prevent irritation and burns to the skin.

During electroplating, some oxygen and hydrogen gas, which in excess is flammable, is produced.

50 ml of pure 99.99% ethanol, but 99% Isopropanol alcohol may work just as well as a solvent.

Tap water.

Tide soap HD. (Only a drop is needed).

Sodium carbonate.

Rag made of old shirt.

Optional salt-- Sodium citrate trihydrate.

Silver black plated material.

9-volt battery, 9-volt, (6 of 1.5 AA) battery pack.

Power supply (either this or a 9-volt battery.)

Platinum wire on a fork taped together.

A popsicle stick to increase the length of the homemade Pt wire electrode.

A large basin PP (Prop ethylene Plastic) to hold 2-4 L of alcohol-base soap solution.

In a basin, a solution consisting of 50 ml (ethanol, or Isopropanol [[Never Methanol- too toxic.]] is used with 1 drop of soap and 10 g of sodium carbonate. This makes a pH of 9 to 10. Basic solution with a PT wire for negative on the 9-volt battery and the wire going to the silver-plated material is positive.

Theory Pt is quite unique since it not that reactive and acts as a reducer when put in with silver oxide plated material. However it is quite rare and cost 60+ dollars to do projects with a hair of Pt but it can be used many times to produce a reducing agent (oxidizer) to strip oxygen off the AgO.

If you want to enhance the cleaning, we can add 5 g of trisodium citrate salt to the 1 L solution. The citrate salt helps remove impurities from the silver. It's an optional chemical salt.

This is just a simple version of what goes on it is a very complex equation i will, for the sake of simplicity, not go into it.

2AgO + Pt + electricity >>>2 Ag + 1/2O2

Balanced equation

4AgO +Pt electroplating electricity >>> 4Ag + O2.

Full PPE should be worn, including gloves and goggles.

If we use a Power supply set at 20 volts, 0.5-0.6 amps, we can get double the results the 9-volt battery has some issues; it consumes a lot of power over time. Within 3 days, the 9-volt battery (6 of 1.5 AA) batteries drop below 3 volts so that is the main issue.

Also, some silver oxide does come off so i am not sure if this is good or bad, but it gives unique results.

It's cheaper than a power supply, but I STRONGLY recommend a power supply so you can get the proper power measurements.

This method with Pt wire is very interesting you can take off AgO or reduce AgO to Ag in this method by the electrostripping method. Do not pour the silver oxide down the drain, it must be handled as hazardous waste afterward.

1-2 L of hazardous ethanol/sodium carbonate/Silver oxide waste mix is normal for this to work.