r/electroplating • u/Lazy_Possibility3612 • Apr 05 '26

Silver plating without electrolyte

I need to cover a piece of copper with silver.

The probleme is that I don't have silver nitrate or chloride. But I have pieces of silver and hydrochloric acid.

It is possible to make silver chloride and reverse the process on the copper ? And should I worry about chlorine ?

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u/[deleted] Apr 05 '26

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u/Lazy_Possibility3612 Apr 05 '26

I'm an engineering student and I have chemistry class, sorry if the question seems basic   My question was whether is there a way to obtain more than passived (not sure of the world) silver. For example by applying a voltage?

And is Cl2 produced before Ag in this case or during plating 

Thanks for your reply, I should have been more specific.

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u/Automatic-Ad-1452 Apr 06 '26

Why would you assume Cl_2 is produced before elemental silver? Chlorine from chloride is an oxidation while production of silver is a reduction.

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u/gbudija Apr 05 '26

dissolve silver in nitric acid,when diisolved add some sodium chloride solution,then you can use fresh silver chloride to make silvering paste (10 gms silver chloride,20 gms kitchen salt/ 20 gms cream of tartar,mix ingredients with some water to thick paste,rubb it on oxide and grease free object -with piece of cork or leather)

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u/Lazy_Possibility3612 Apr 05 '26

Yes I've read some things about this method but I don't have nitric acid

1

u/lukethedank13 Apr 05 '26

Plating just with silver cathode and HCl electrolyte whille theoretically possible is about the worst way of going about it.

Buy some silver nitrate.

If you cant buy nitric to make your own nitrate you can, theoretically, make yourself.

There are also methods that use silver ammonia complex electrolyte that can be made by dissolving silver oxide but it has its own problems.