3dplating-blog

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Post 11: Brush Electroplating

The above posts have largely been limited to different ways of immersion electroplating, i.e, a system where the item to be electroplated is immersed in an electrolyte. Immersion plating allows the plating of many small parts at one time. It evenly distributes over the surface reaching into cracks and crevices that may be inaccessible otherwise. There is another form of electroplating called brush electroplating. The beauty of brush electroplating is that there is no constraint on size. The item does not need to fit into a container to be plated. Brush plating also gives the option to plate very small or specific parts of the item. The best benefits are that it is portable and it has much lower startup costs. This video differences brush electroplating with immersion electroplating:

Brush-plating, also known as selective plating or spot-plating is a technique which makes it possible to deposit metals and/or alloy's on conducting materials. The brush, typically a stainless steel body wrapped with a cloth material that both holds the plating solution and prevents direct contact with the item being plated, is connected to the positive side of a low voltage direct-current power source, and the item to be plated connected to the negative. The operator dips the brush in plating solution then applies it to the item, moving the brush continually to get an even distribution of the plating material. The part needs to be cleaned first and then brushing an activating solution might be required in case of gold plating. This video shows brush plating in detail: 

Brush plating can be applied to any item, provided that it is made conductive first. I could not find any videos of brush plating a 3D printed item, but there was a video about plating a sea shell after applying conductive ink. The process for 3D printed items will be similar. The process does not look too complicated and the results are impressive.

Brush electroplating requires a lot of human control (unless the process is automated) and is limited to a layer thickness of about 0.7mm. If the object to be plated has parts where the brush cannot reach, immersion plating should be preferred. A key benefit of brush electroplating is that it uses very small volumes of solutions to accomplish the job at hand. Brush-plated deposits are applied at much faster rates than those achieved in immersion plating. With proper surface preparation, the quality of the deposit and adhesion is equivalent or may even be superior to immersion plating. All said, it remains to experiment and see if brush electroplating can indeed solve our quest for a safe and simple desktop electroplating machine.

References:

http://www.onderstal.nl/what_is_brushplating.htm

http://www.sharrettsplating.com/blog/selective-brush-plating/

http://www.pfonline.com/articles/brush-plating

http://www.goldn.co.uk/electroplating-support/how-to/an-introduction-to-brush-plating/

If you find something interesting related to electroplating of 3D printed items, please mail me at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

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Post 10: A 3D Metal Printer Based On Electroplating

I came across a very interesting use of electroplating in the 3d printing industry. Gastón Accardi, an Argentinian engineer, used electroplating to prototype a metal 3D printer that just cost him $2 to create. His video, outlining the process with a short working demo is:

For his working prototype, Accardi took a marker, pulled out its insides and then filled it with a copper acid solution. The anode was copper electrode wire that was fed into the marker. The cathode was the printer’s build plate coated with conductive silver to make it conductive. When the connection is complete, the ions from the copper go from inside of the acid within the marker, through the marker’s tip/pad, and onto the surface of the build plate. This can be done one layer at a time, in order to build up a 3-dimensional object. A simple image illustrating the process:

The marker can be filled with virtually any conductive or semiconductive metal, such as titanium, gold, platinum, iron, nickel, chrome, as well as alloys like bronze.

More on this can be read here.

This prototype was released in Feb 2015, and I looked for developments in the past 2 years. A schematics to make a 3d printer for metal based on this concept was released in Jan, 2016 in thingiverse. The link is: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1297146

There was some discussion in this public forum in 2015. A good suggestion was to use this for 2.5D printing or PCB prototype printing, since the process is quite slow for a 3d object. Another user suggested using graphene instead of copper as that is a 1000 times more conductive. There have not been any updates since 2016 in any forum that I could find.

This printer was an ingenious device and I do hope work is on to improve it further. Could a double-nozzle printer be used to deposit metal traces along with FDM printing? This could create a conductive object that could then be plated using simple electroplating and might address the speed issue that Accardi’s printer faced.

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 9: Safety Precautions While Electroplating

Electroplating chemicals are hazardous and should be used with caution. A proper knowledge of the possible risks is necessary before undertaking the process. It is also important to understand the disposal mechanisms for the same.

Copper Sulphate solution is inarguably one of the most commonly used solutions in DIY electroplating. The safety data sheet of copper sulphate solution is available here. Copper Sulphate solution is toxic if swallowed, causes skin and eye irritation  and is very toxic to aquatic life. It is suggested to wear safety glasses and chemical-resistant gloves. There are laws regulating the disposal of these chemicals that must be followed strictly. If the need is to dispose just a small amount, one suggested procedure may be to put steel wool in it, so most of the copper will plate out as metal, then neutralize it with baking soda and flush it down the sink.

Nickel solution is also commonly used in electroplating, especially in the electroless nickel process. General short-term effects include irritation of the skin and eye whereas longer-term effects could include allergic reactions in the skin, asthma, inflammation of the lungs and lung/nose cancer. Here is a link to safe nickel plating which does not use unsafe acids. The safety data sheet for nickel solution can be found in [3] and [4]. The basic waste disposal procedure for waste treatment of spent Electroless Nickel baths is simply to plate all the nickel out of the bath. The nickel in the bath is plated onto steel wool until the concentration is below 2-3 ppm. After this, the local authority guidelines should be checked. Article [5] mentions sending it to the POTW (publicly owned treatment works) after reducing the nickel concentration.

Chromic acid is a strong irritant and corrosive. Exposure usually arises as the result of splashes, as a mist of chromic acid coated bubbles of hydrogen or as chromic acid contaminated dust. Chromic acid affects the skin, nasal and bronchial mucosal linings. On the skin, chromic acid can cause chronic ulcers known as ‘chrome holes’. In the nasal cavity, chrome ulceration affects the nasal septum and can cause perforation. When inhaled as a mist or contaminated dust, chromic acid can cause nasal irritation, rhinitis and bronchitis. If splashed in the eyes, chromic acid can cause severe injury including conjuctival inflammation and corneal injury. Chromic acid contains soluble hexavalent chromium which is toxic and carcinogenic. Disposal is tough and standard procedures should be followed. Some steps can be found out in [1]. The safety data sheet is available here.

If any other chemical / heavy metal is being used, its safety sheet and disposal mechanism should be understood before using it. Some common cautions while electroplating are:

Do not wear rings. No jewellery be worn when one is handling electrical circuits. There have been several incidents where the jewellery contributed to an electrocution incident.

Wear insulated gloves and splash goggles.

Always add acid to water.

Ensure that the ventilation system is appropriate for hazardous fumes.

Always label and date solutions properly.

References:

https://www.chemistry.nus.edu.sg/PSSO/safety/Special%20Chemical%20Waste.htm

http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/metal-toxicity-health-dangers-nickel/

https://www.fishersci.com/shop/msdsproxy?productName=SN70100&productDescription=NICKEL+REF+STD+SOL+CRT+100ML&catNo=SN70-100&vendorId=VN00033897&storeId=10652

http://www.circuitmedic.com/msds/msds_nickel_plating_solution.shtml

http://www.pfonline.com/articles/easy-waste-treatment-for-spent-en-baths

https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/staff/policy/healthandsafety/publications/waste/waste-disposaloflaboratorywastesguidance/

https://www.ganoksin.com/article/electroplating-safety-precautions/

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 8: Chrome Hazards & Alternatives

Industrial electroplating makes use of chromic acid for etching as well as of chrome for a decorative finish. Chrome is a heavy metal, a carcinogenic and a mutagenic. Hexavalent chrome, used in chrome-based etching is being banned in US and Europe (http://nomorehex.org/LEGISLATION/EU-MANDATE) and this should not be used at all in desktop settings.

Unnecessary hazards related to the use of chromium based sulphuric acid solutions and reasons for not using it are as follows:

The hexavalent chromium present is considered a human carcinogen.

It is a strong oxidizer that has been known to react violently and explode when combined with oxidizable materials.

The addition of chloride or halogens to chromic acid solutions can generate the highly toxic and volatile carcinogen, chromyl chloride.

Used chromic acid solutions cannot be neutralized and flushed into the sanitary sewer because the chromium metal remains.

Chrome-free etchants have been developed. They might be useful in case one wants to develop a solution which uses etching in some way. DOW Chemicals has come up with Ecoposit CF-800 Etch. It uses Manganese in a sulphuric acid medium. The etching behaviour, as claimed by DOW is similar, the risk is vastly reduced. Further details about this technology is available here.

Another company Growel has also come up with its chrome-free variant called the Ginplate Enviroetch 901. The technical data sheet is available here. The process sequence is listed in the 3rd page and the technical data sheets can be found at this project’s GitHub account (see below) under ‘Misc’ folder.

References:

https://www.chemistry.nus.edu.sg/PSSO/safety/Special%20Chemical%20Waste.htm

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 7: Industrial Plating

I visited a couple of industrial plastic electroplaters to understand their process and see if that could be used for better finish at a lower cost at a desktop level. The industrial platers have processes designed for ABS plastic and hence accept only ABS 3D-printed samples. Some samples after plating are:

                                     Chrome-plated sample

           Black Nickel Plated                                             Nickel Plated

The process used by the industrial platers involves the following processes:

Cleaning of object: The industrial platers use large beakers filled with solutions. They take extreme precaution that the solution does not suffer contamination because of dirt, oil, grease, etc that might be in the object to be plated. After this, the parts are scoured with sand paper to develop micro-roughness for increasing the surface area.

Etching: In this step, the pre-cleaned ABS parts are dipped in an aqueous solution containing chromic acid (600 g/L), sulfuric acid (150 mL/L) and deionized water. The solution is prepared by adding chromic acid and sulfuric acid slowly into stirring deionized water. After that, the temperature of the solution is raised to 60 °C and maintained at that temperature. The ABS samples are immersed in the bath for 10–15 min. The samples are then taken out and washed 2–3 times carefully.

Neutralisation: In this stage, the residual amount of chromium that remains in the ABS surface is removed with sodium sulfite as a reducing agent, so as to prevent its inhibition in further steps. Even trace amounts of chromium may completely inhibit electroless deposition. The ABS parts are dipped in solution of 10 g/L of sodium sulfite at 25 °C for about 2 min and, finally, washed with water.

Activation: The conditioned surface is contacted with an activator or catalysts consisting of a colloidal suspension of palladium/tin (Pd/Sn) catalyst powder. The catalyst particles get deposited in the micro-cavities formed in the surface during the conditioning process. It is desirable not to put too much activator on the work being processed and to avoid too long of an immersion time.

Acceleration: The accelerator dissolves excess Sn and removes it from the surface to expose the adsorbed Pd. The solution contains a mixture of 30 g/L sodium hydroxide (NaOH), 3 g/L copper sulfate (CuSO4) and 15 g/L ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium (EDTANa2). This is done at 55 °C for about 7 min. The samples are washed with water.

Electroless Nickel Plating: The electroless plating bath composition includes a semi-stable solution containing a metal salt, a reducer, a complexing agent for the metal, a stabilizer, and a buffer system. When the palladium-activated part is put in the bath, metal gets reduced on the palladium sites and the autocatalytic reaction continues till the part is removed from the solution. Continuous metal layers are created in this step.

Electrolytic copper plating: After electroless plating, electrolytic plating of acid copper is carried out to build up higher layer thickness and give a bright conductive surface. This copper coating acts as a buffer layer between the base material and the final metal plate. It also contributes to the stability of the final plate.

Bright Nickel Plating: Electrolytic nickel coating is done following the electroplating copper plating step in order to fulfill the corrosion and abrasion resistance requirements. It sets up a barrier between the copper deposit and the corrosive environment.

Decorative Finish: The finishing of the coated part can be done using chrome flash, brass, gold, silver, etc.

The reason industrial plating works so well is that they utilise the chemical properties of ABS. When ABS surface is etched with strongly oxidizing chemicals such as chromic acid, butadiene part of ABS is dissolved and cavities of nano- or micro-dimensions are formed. As a result of strong oxi- dation of the polymer, surface is rendered hydrophilic and rough. The roughened surface favors a number of hollows on it. These hollows give rise to large surface area and more and more of anchor sites. Thus, excellent adhesion is observed making it difficult to be peeled off. The cavities formed act as mechanical inter-locking sites or anchor points for the successive adsorption of activating agents such as palladium followed by electroless nickel or copper. The anchoring of palladium ensures the penetration of metal deep into the hollows and result in stronger bonding between ABS base and metal layer. The strength of adhesiveness between the substrate surface and plated metal depends on how effective the etching step is.

References:

http://www.dcmsme.gov.in/reports/chromiumplatingonabsplastic.pdf

http://www.mdpi.com/2079-6412/4/3/574/pdf

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 6: Possible Applications

Aesthetic: The use of copper, nickel, chrome, and possibly gold or other noble metals make for desirable finish, and are found in a growing number of applications within the jewellery industry, automotive industry, electronics industry, plumbing industry, and household appliances. Some other interesting applications are miniatures, photo frames, vases, showpieces, artworks, glass frames and accessories.

Functional: Plated plastic parts can address a number of engineering requirements, including chemical, wear, and heat resistance, ESD prevention, EMI and RFI shielding, and radio transmission, reception, and filtration. One other area where I think this could find use is in making low-end prosthetics. Since the plated parts are stronger and more durable, they could probably be used in place of plastic 3d printed prosthetics for better results.

Ability to test for ergonomics of metallic hand held products: If there is a need to cost-effectively simulate exactly what a metallic end-use part will feel like in the user's hand, electroplating could be helpful. By creating several models with different dimensions simultaneously, you can test a hand-held medical or other device for fit, feel, approximate weight, and ease of use.

References:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-possible-when-plating-3d-printed-parts-daniel-fernback

https://www.lifewire.com/plating-3d-prints-2286

http://www.forecast3d.com/metalclad.html

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 5: Alternates to Electroplating

Electroplating is, to an extent, a complicated operation. Before proceeding further with it, I would like to take a moment and analyse the alternatives available.

1. Metal 3D printing: This one is a no-brainer. Given the costs of metal 3d printing machines and the fact that the applications we are seeking can be achieved with plastic objects, this alternative is a couple of orders of magnitude costlier.

2. Spray paint: This is a simple alternative and in many cases could serve the purpose of aesthetic appeal. This video does a great job in showing its potential. 

My experience with a gold spray was not very good. Aerosols are expensive and even after 4 sprays, I got something like the image below. Also, while sprayed objects might look good from a distance, there is no actual metal deposition and the difference can be clearly observed at close quarters. Also, none of the properties like strength, adhesion, etc that metal deposition adds is observable here.

3. Vacuum Metallizing: It is a technique of coating metal on the surface of objects. It involves heating the coating metal to its boiling point in a vacuum chamber, then letting condensation deposit the metal on the substrate's surface. Resistance heating, electron beam, or plasma heating is used to vaporize the coating metal. Creating a vacuum chamber is pretty difficult and I did not find any good DIY solution that can be replicated at home. This is a good solution for industries.

A video on vacuum metalizing:

4.  Electroforming: Electroforming is the metal forming process where metal is grown by electrodeposition onto a substrate. The electrolytic bath is used to deposit metal (for example nickel, gold or copper) onto a conductive patterned surface. In electro forming, the mandrel (patterned surface) will be removed from the product. After the mandrel is removed, the object that remains is entirely created through electrodeposition. After electroforming it is possible to perform electroplating to add a coating to improve corrosion-resistance or to get a more attractive (cosmetic) product. This is a much-involved process requiring a conductive mandrel. The conductive mandrel is created using vacuum metalling or chemical treatments. This process is useful to create lightweight / hollow parts. 3d printing already equips us with that.

Buildparts is company that offers various metallic finishes: http://www.buildparts.com/idea-center/ShinyParts

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 4: Conductive Sprays

In the last post, we saw the use of conductive sprays by everyone who wanted to electroplate. I could not find any conductive spray in my local hardware store. Also, I wanted to see if there existed a low-cost DIY solution to making conductive paints. I came across these links:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Conductive-Paint/ (DIY Graphite conductive ink)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik9hXkjX15A (Graphite conductive ink)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iyRUBvd260&t=200s (Copper conductive ink, poor voice quality)

I made conductive inks by both the methods, using graphite and copper nano-particles. Making the graphite paint is really easy. You just need to get very fine powdered graphite and mix it in equal parts in an acrylic solution. After applying the graphite paint, the resistance of the 3d printed part dropped to about 8k ohms per cm. Polishing the object with a 300 grit sandpaper and applying the paint again brought the resistance down to about 5k ohms per cm. Further applications did not result in a significant reduction in resistance. The plating process deposited copper unevenly along the object. One cause for this could be that the resistance was still too high.

Nickel plating using graphite conductive ink

The copper nano-particle conductive ink is synthesised by combining copper sulphate solution with an ascorbic acid solution. There is extensive research in this field for flexible electronics. Here is a research paper on its synthesis and use. The steps to create can also be seen in video 3 at the start of the post. After allowing the solution to settle, we can sediment copper nano-particles from the solution. Mixing it with an acrylic paint gets the conductive solution ready. However, this has a resistance of 30k ohms per cm. Electroplating it did not get any noticeable depositions.  

Copper Nano-particles (sedimented)

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 3: Benefits and types of electroplating

Benefits of electroplating

This link largely summarises the benefits that can be obtained by electroplating as well as the different types of electroplating. I am mentioning the ones I find most relevant in 3D electroplating:

Enhances appearance: This is a cost-effective way to make products more aesthetically appealing.

Reduces Friction: Nickel plating improves performance and reduces premature wear and tear.

Conducts Electricity: Plating can enhance electrical conductivity, making it a highly-effective process for the manufacturing of electronics and electrical components.

Resists Heat: Plating processes such as gold or zinc-nickel are capable of withstanding extremely high temperatures, especially used to protect engine parts and components from damage caused by extreme temperatures.

Increases Hardness: Plated surfaces are less susceptible to damage when struck or dropped, which can increase their lifespan.

Absorbs Light and Energy: Black electroless nickel plating absorbs the light and energy essential to many manufacturing processes in industries such as aviation, automotive and aerospace.

Promotes Adhesion: Copper plating is an ideal solution for providing an undercoating that facilitates adhesion with additional coatings.

Types of electroplating

COPPER ELECTROPLATING

Copper is a soft, malleable metal. The notable qualities of this reddish-brown metal are its ability to conduct electricity and its inherent flexibility. Electroplating copper can be extremely valuable in applications such as the manufacturing of electronic parts and components, as well as products used in the aerospace and defense industries. Copper is also widely used for plating on plastics and other non-metallic surfaces. Key copper electroplating benefits include excellent corrosion protection, high thickness build and heat treatment stop-off.

NICKEL ELECTROPLATING

Nickel is a lustrous, silvery-white metal that offers many functional and decorative advantages. Types of nickel electroplating include sulfate — which is typically used to brighten the surface of a substrate — and sulfamate, which is used in applications where increased substrate strength and reduced stress are desired.

TIN ELECTROPLATING

The electroplating of tin, or “tinning,” is often viewed as a cost-effective alternative to plating with more expensive materials such as gold, silver or palladium. Tin’s relatively low cost and abundant supply makes it a popular choice for many different industrial applications, such as the manufacturing of electronic parts and components, hardware products, fasteners, screws, nuts and bolts.

ZINC ELECTROPLATING

Like tin electroplating, zinc electroplating is often chosen when cost is a primary concern. One key advantage of plating with zinc is its compatibility with just about any type of metal. Zinc can also produce a wide range of surface colors. In its natural state, zinc will provide a silvery-gray finish, although colors such as blue, yellow and black can be achieved.

Important zinc plating benefits include excellent adhesion and its resistance to hydrogen embrittlement. Because of its superior adhesive capabilities, zinc plating is sometimes used to provide a base coat prior to painting. Zinc plating is frequently used in the manufacturing of washers, bolts, nuts, transmission components, armored personnel carriers and tanks.

GOLD ELECTROPLATING

Gold electroplating is commonly used to provide a gleaming finish for fine jewelry. From a functional standpoint, gold offers superior corrosion protection and wear resistance, excellent electrical conductivity, and reliable protection from intense heat. If cost is not an object, gold is usually the best electroplating choice.

ZINC-NICKEL ELECTROPLATING

Another commonly applied plating alloy features the combination of zinc and nickel, with zinc serving as the primary component. This significantly exceeds the capabilities of either zinc or nickel alone. From a cosmetic standpoint a zinc-nickel alloy will provide a stainless steel-type appearance that is often desirable for many types of metal parts. Zinc-nickel also provides excellent surface coverage and excellent uniformity of the plate distribution.

ELECTROLESS CHROME PLATING

An electroless chrome plating solution actually consists of an electroless nickel bath that includes a one-percent cobalt component. The cobalt element produces a brighter, chrome-like appearance than provided by electroless nickel alone.

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 2: What has been done till now

There have been quite a few attempts to electroplate 3d printed objects. One worth noting and which generated a lot of buzz was Orbit1. Orbit1 promised a simple machine that could achieve awesome finishes. Their interview at a maker faire:

Their Kickstarter campaign looked very promising. Their campaign video:

Unfortunately, funding was cancelled even after raising $100,000 and they became inactive after that. Their promised machines were very expensive though ($2000). Their Kickstarter campaign mentions using an Ag-Cu conductive spray and a copper plating solution. The Amazon price for an Ag-Cu aerosol is about $37 for 5ounces (about 140g) and $11 for 1lb of copper sulphate pentahydrate crystals (about 450g). Adding another $2 for a copper anode, this should be enough material to coat at least 5-6 items, maybe even more if the process is well-understood and more than 1 items are plated at one go. This makes up for an average cost of $8-$10 per plated item. 

I found a youtube video which uses a similar process and is much more detailed and authentic. However, the process in quite complicated for a layman with equipments that are not easily available. Setting up such a system is not easy. One can appreciate the work Orbit1 would have done instead. The video:

In the tradeoff for cost versus simplicity of operations, a system like this might find a place. It would be fairly simple to use, and could be made available at a much lower cost than $2000.

Some other good youtube videos on electroplating onto objects are:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTrcpucEplo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PnlZ4MTfCk&t=468s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KflNgnIhHYc

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating

[3dplating-blog]

Post 1: The Idea

To develop a desktop electroplating system which is safe, simple to use and cost-effective.

As a society, we have always loved shiny objects. That is probably one of the main reasons metal plating of plastic parts really started. If there is one thing that is seriously lacking in 3d printed plastic parts today, it is the overall aesthetics. The end consumers are not really concerned with the technology if their needs are unmet. This is probably one of the main reasons why the demand for consumer 3d printed products is still quite low and 3d printing continues to serve niche markets.

Benefits:

Better aesthetics

Increased demand (esp for jewellery, miniatures, etc)

Increased strength of products

Difficulties:

1. Caution while using chemicals

First Experiment: Even though 3d printed parts are non-conductive, I decided to do a classic electroplating with copper sulphate to see if there were any results at all. I increased the concentration of sulphuric acid in the solution. A youtube video link on standard electroplating:

I did not observe any results on the 3d printed part. I did electroplate a coin though, just for kicks.

Your queries and suggestions are always welcome. Please mail me any relevant content at pkd.sarp@gmail.com

All my findings are also available at the GitHub repo: https://github.com/dharnidharka/3dplating