CopperPro Plating Solution

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We have designed CopperPro Plating Solution for bright copper plating in a beaker using  our insoluble (platinised titanium) anodes.
It produces bright, highly-levelled glossy deposits that are reproducible provided additions of Copper Replenisher, CopperPro Brightener and Copper Pro Glossing Agent are regularly maintained using our online CopperPro Calculator.
As supplied, this ready-to-use solution does not contain any corrosive chemicals however sulphuric acid is generated at the solution is used and at the end of bath life consideration must be taken into its disposal (click on the Tech Specs tab for more information).

This solution and its replenishers are available worldwide.

After striking zinc and zincated aluminium parts with our Alkaline Copper Tank Plating Solution, or  our Alkaline Copper Brush Plating Solution, we recommend a build of to 10 microns with CopperPro Plating Solution to protect from corrosion if the part is going to be used outdoors.

Also, as the solution is used,  its acidity increases, you may wish to consider the use of Copper Tank pH Stabiliser to control its acidity especially when plating zinc and zincated aluminium (please refer to Tech Specs for more info).

This zinc shower rail holder has been tank plated with our Alkaline Copper Tank Plating Solution to form an adhesion layer then built up to thickness (10 microns) with CopperPro Plating Solution. Please click on the ‘Process sequences’ tab to see a step-by-step guide to how to use this solution and view the video on the ‘Video’ tab to see the whole process from star to finish.

Copper selectively plated onto jadite using Conductive Ink to render it conductive.

Copper electroformed onto a range of articles.

CopperPro Plating Solution has been designed for use with platinised titanium anodes.

In beaker systems with copper anodes, due to the proximity of the anodes to the stirring mechanism (usually a stirring bar) the agitation causes the micron-size, colloidal copper particles (produced as a byproduct of the dissolution of the anode) to penetrate the anode bag and enter the plating solution. These particles then co-plate on the work piece causing roughness and dull deposits.
Using insoluble anodes (platinised titanium) eliminates the issues encountered with copper anodes.

The solution is supplied with no added sulphuric acid. Sulphuric acid is generated at the insoluble anode during plating and gradually increases as the solution is used and the solution is useable between a pH of 0 and 2.

As the sulphuric acid level increases, the throwing power also increases and is at its highest towards the end-of-life of the solution which is approximately when the sulphuric content reaches 200 grams per litre or when the recommended addition of Copper Replenisher fails to dissolve.

The solution is supplied with two surface modifying additives; CopperPro Brightener and CopperPro Glossing Agent which under normal circumstances, are added in the same volumes.
The use of CopperPro Brightener is essential for providing specular brightness. Adding CopperPro Glossing Agent provides a high degree of levelling; filling up recesses and levelling off high points on the surface.

Unlike conventional tank copper plating systems, copper is not replenished by dissolution of a copper anode and must be added. This is best performed at the end of the plating sequence (day) by adding Copper Replenisher.

To keep the solution in balance, we strongly recommend you make use of our online CopperPro Calculator.
Using our Coulometer also makes predicting and controlling plating thickness far easier than using the time and current method.

Copper Plating on Plastic

Copper plating on plastic is possible with. When used with our CopperPro Calculator, you can now plate on to most non-conductive and metal surfaces to substantial and measurable thicknesses.
You won’t need to do lots of buffing and polishing, as our CopperPro Solution plates consistently bright and smooth.
In this project we have used Conductive Ink (hi-grade) in place of the standard Conductive Paint. The Conductive Ink (hi-grade) is more difficult to apply and cure than Conductive Paint. However it can be transported worldwide and takes a lot less time to build up to brightness than Conductive Paint.

This project has four main stages;

1. Preparing the surface of the plastic model soldier to make it conductive with our Conductive Ink (hi-grade).
2. Preparing your copper plating equipment.
3. Copper plating in the CopperPro Plating Solution.
4. Post plating of silver and gold.

Please note: The Rectifier shown in this project has now been discontinued and replaced by our MultiPlater.

Stage 1. Preparing the surface for copper plating

a) Mounting the model soldier

It’s important to mount you work well before starting as this will make surface preparation and plating much easier. Drill a small guide hole in an area where it can’t be seen. At this point it’s a good idea to calculate the surface area of your item, in preparation for entering the correct settings into the MultiPlater. We estimated that this model has a surface area of approximately 20 squared centimetres.

Screw in a brass screw and then attach a small length of our Gold Plated Jigging Wire to the other end. This will have two functions; it will form a conductive link between the object and the CopperPro Plating Solution and equipment, ensuring a good electrical circuit. It will also be able to be gripped securely in the crocodile clip, making sure there’s no danger of your piece falling in to the CopperPro solution.

We’ll be spraying on our Conductive Ink (hi-grade) to make the surface conductive and prepare it for copper plating. This could also be painted on.

b) Spraying on the lacquer

Adhesion is not so important when plating thick copper layers so either a solvent or water based lacquer should suffice. Where a lacquer is essential and that’s to seal the work piece if it is porous, for example wood.

Wait for 10-15 minutes and once the lacquer is almost dry but retains a little stickiness, either spray or paint on our Conductive Ink (hi-grade).

spraying lacquer

c) Using an airbrush to spray on our Conductive Ink (hi-grade)

Charge your airbrush with our Conductive Ink (hi-grade).

Spray on a fine layer of our Conductive Ink (hi-grade). You only need a small amount of ink. Spray at a distance of 5-6 cm and apply only enough to block out the underlying surface of the object. Leave to air dry for 30 minutes before apply a second coat.

Dry in an oven.

Leave in a fan oven at a temperature of 50 degrees centigrade for three hours.

Please note that this ink dries far quicker and harder at higher temperatures. However most plastics warp at temperatures in excess of 50 centigrade.

The temperature range for drying ranges from minimum of 50 to 80 degrees centigrade.

conductive ink

Stage 2. Preparing your plating equipment

a) Working out the amps for the MultiPlater and plating times

First, work out the surface area of your work in centimetres.

You can then either enter this into the CopperPro Calculator, which you will find on our website and all the calculations will be done for you,

Then you need to decide how thick you require your copper-plated layer to be and therefore how long it should be plated for. If you are plating an item that is quite fragile, you will probably need to build a fairly thick layer of copper 100 microns for example.

calculating electroforming settings

 

b) Setting up your plating beaker

Fill the rinse beakers with tap water and turn the Hot Plate Stirrer on to its lowest setting so that the copper solution is being agitated. Make sure the temperature of the solution is in the range of 18-24 degrees centigrade. Although higher temperatures are possible, brightness falls off rapidly after 25 degrees centigrade. Plug one end of the black lead as shown into the front of the MultiPlater and the other end into the base of the Plating Arm.

copper electroforming kit

c) Setting the volts and amps

Set the amps to that recommended by our CopperPro Calculator. Then turn off the power.

Make sure the black lead is attached to the base on the Plating Stand and the red lead is attached to the Beaker Ring.

 

 

Stage 3. Plating in CopperPro Plating Solution

a) Placing your work into the solution

Lower your work into the solution and start the timer. Turn on Output and check that the amp level is correct; in this case with the plastic soldier it should be reading 0.5 to be increased after after 5 minutes minutes to 0.9 amp.

You should quickly see a layer of copper building on your item.

Please note: When copper plating larger pieces or where the layer of conductive ink is particularly thin, it will be necessary to plate for 5 minutes at a quarter of the recommended amps so as to build up a thick enough layer of copper around the contact area to enable full conduction.

So for example, if the calculator recommends 4 amps, then start at 1 amp for 5 minutes, then turn up to 4 amps after 5 minutes.

b) Finished copper plated soldier

When the time is up, remove your work from the CopperPro solution and pass it through the two rinse beakers. As can be seen in the photograph, your work will be covered in a bright, shiny and substantial layer of copper that will require very little if any, polishing or buffing.

c) Copper plating on other non-conductive surfaces

The same sequence of applying lacquer, conductive ink and then copper plating can be used on natural materials such as shell, wood, stone and leaves.

If you intend to plate on semi-absorbent surfaces such as wood you will need to apply at least 2-3 layers of lacquer to completely seal the surface.

 

For copper plating on shell, the surface of the shell must not come into direct contact with the CopperPro solution as the solution will etch the shell, so every part of the shell must be covered in layers of lacquer.

Electroformed-jewellery

Stage 4. Brush or tank plating subsequent layers

a) Preparing the copper plated surface

Once you have a substantial layer of copper on your piece and you have passed it through the rinse stages, you can now go ahead and plate other layers such as silver or gold. If you wish to gold plate, you’ll need to plate a barrier layer of white bronze or silver beforehand.

For maximum adhesion, we advise that the part is rubbed with MPU and rinsed prior to further electroplating.

b) Brush plating a silver barrier layer

The beauty of Spa Plating’s system is its flexibility. You can move seamlessly between tank, brush and pen plating once you have our Tank Plating Rectifier.

To brush plate a barrier layer of silver, set up your brush plating equipment as normal by attaching an electrode handle fitted with a platinum electrode to the red lead and grip a Conductor Strip into the crocodile clip on the black lead. Estimate how much Silver Brush Plating Solution you’ll need with the online Plating Calculator, then follow the instructions for brush plating silver that you’ll find in previous projects in this manual.

c) Gold brush plating

To gold brush plate the item, calculate how much gold solution you’ll need with our Plating Calculator and then refer to the previous projects that include gold brush plating for guidance.

How to use this calculator :

1. In the first box, enter the thickness that you want your item to be plated to in microns.

2. In the second box, enter the surface area of the article in square centimetres (cm2).

3. Enter the volume of your beaker or tank in ml (cm3). Note: This field is optional but useful if you’re tracking the concentration of sulphuric acid generated at the anode.

4. Click the ‘Calculate’ button.

5. Read off the amp setting for your rectifier and the plating time.

6. If using our Coulometer, note the number of coulombs you should plate to. Using our coulometer is far more accurate than standard amp-hour meters especially when plating small items.

7. If using an amp-hour meter, take a note of the amp-hours you should plate to.

8. Then read off the volume or weight of CopperPro Brightener to add. Please note that for small items where you’re adding a fraction of a millilitre of CopperPro Brightener, we strongly advise that you weigh out your addition on scales accurate to at least 2 decimal places, preferably 3 decimal places. You can purchase our 1ml syringes fitted with flexible safety needles that are ideal for dispensing the brighteners.

9. Similar to point 8 above, read off the volume or weight of CopperPro Glossing Agent to add.

10. Next is the weight of copper replenisher to replace the copper plated on the work piece.

11. Sulphuric is generated at the platinum/inert anode during the process. You can read off the weight of sulphuric acid produced in this box.

12. The increase in concentration of sulphuric acid can be read off in this box. Please note that it’s only displayed if you inputed the volume of your beaker or tank in the input fields. If you didn’t include it, only N/A wish be shown meaning ‘not applicable’.

Operating Conditions and Deposit Data

 

Plating Factor 0.03 A/cm2
Plating rate 0.67 micron per minute at 0.05A/cm2
Temperature 18 – 35°C (optimum 23°C)
pH (of working solution) 0 – 2
Agitation Medium (See notes)
Additive system 2-brightener dye-based system: CopperPro Brightener and CopperPro Glossing Agent
Addition rate for CopperPro Brightener 0.08 millilitre or gram per 1000 coulombs (0.28 Ah)
Addition rate for CopperPro Glossing Agent 0.08 millilitre or gram per 1000 coulombs (0.28 Ah)
Addition rate for Copper Replenisher 1.3 grams per 1000 coulombs (0.28 Ah)
Rate of generation of sulphuric acid 0.51 grams per 1000 coulombs (0.28 Ah)
Electrode Platinum electrodes (bagged)
Cathode efficiency Above 99% at Plating Factor = 0.035A/cm2
Hardness of deposit 160 VPN falling to 100 VPN over 5 days at room temp
Density of deposit 8.9 g/cm3
Stress Low (Tensile)
Special storage requirements None
Shelf life Over 2 years
Health and Safety classification Harmful
Transport (UN number) CopperPro Plating Solution is not classified as dangerous for transport.

 

Notes:

 

  • If particulate contamination enters the solution, filter using our filter kit.
  • We recommend that the solution is filtered after major additions of Copper Replenisher.
    Using our Filter Pump greatly facilitates this process.
  • Brightener additions should be made at the start of plating if possible. Additions can
    be determined using the CopperPro Calculator by clicking Here.
  • Higher temperatures favour less burning on exposed areas ie: sharp edges or pointed parts.
  • A higher agitation rate allows for a higher Plating Factor to be used leading to a
    higher plating rate.
  • Build up of blue crystals is usual on the electrode ring. Remove by scraping them
    back into the solution and allow to dissolve before commencing plating.

General guide;

Certain small items, for example Swabs, Nibs and Plating Pens can be sent by normal post within the UK

  • The courier option for UK deliveries is FedeX and APC. Delivery times range usually from 2 – 5 working days.
  • Royal Mail option is available on a limited range of non-liquid orders. Delivery from 5 – 10 working days.
  • Free UK mainland delivery available on orders over £200
  • International orders usually 5 – 10 working days.

For all price quotations for deliveries, please add your items to our shopping cart. You will be able to see the shipping costs by clicking on the ‘Calculate shipping’ button in the cart and before checking out.

Please click on the link below to download the SDS for this product:

CopperPro safety data sheet.

Fault diagnosis when copper plating on conducting materials
Please scroll down for Non-conducting materials (electroforming)

Fault

Possible cause

Corrective action
1.  No plating at all.
 a)  Electricity not flowing: Multiplater. Check that the green dot is showing on the MultiPlater. If the dial shows ‘Standby’, then you need to put it into plating mode where a green light should show on the dial. If a red light shows, then it indicates a broken plating circuit (see next)
b)  Bad connection in the plating circuit. Check all electrical connections including the connection between the crocodile clip and Beaker Ring, Platinum Rod Anode and Beaker Ring and connections into the MultiPlater.
c)  Reverse polarity usually indicated in discoloured or
etched workpiece		 Check that the black lead is plugged into the black socket on the MultiPlater and the other end to the workpiece. Check also that the red lead is plugged into the red socket on the MultiPlater and the other end to the Beaker Ring.
d)  Contamination with nickel, chromium, zinc or iron. Replace solution.
e)  Platinum Rod Electrodes have become passive (highly unlikely) No platinum remaining on electrode. The only way this can practicably happen is that the electrode has been mechanically abraided removing the platinum coating. In this case, the electrode will need to be replaced or sent to us for re-platinum plating.
2.  Dullness of plate in the middle of articles and recesses.
 a)  Amp setting too low Check the surface area of the workpiece and recalculate the current (amps).
b)  Lack of brighteners Add 0.5ml of CopperPro Brightener for every litre of solution and check for difference. If there’s little or no difference, add another 0.5ml of CopperPro Brightener per litre together with 0.5ml of CopperPro Glossing Agent.
c)  CopperPro Brightener and Glossing Agent out of balance. Dummy plate out on a scrap workpiece for 10,000 coulombs making the recommended additions of CopperPro Brightener but not adding CopperPro Glossing Agent. Then add 0.5ml of CopperPro Glossing Agent and continue plating making additions as per the CopperPro Calculator.
c)  Temperature too high. Reduce temperature to within operating range (see Tech Specs)
d)  Low conductivity. The bath starts off at a lower conductivity. The conductivity will increase as the bath is used (using our Platinum Rod Electrodes) and brightness distribution will also increase. Plate out on a scrap workpiece to obtain higher conductivity keeping up with all replenishers as per CopperPro Calculator.
e) Copper content too high. Lower the copper content by allowing to plate out without making Copper Electroforming Replenisher additions.
3.  Deposit dull all over.
 a)  Organic contamination Treat with Carbon Powder (see shop). Add 10ml of Copper Electroforming Brightener for every litre of solution treated. Run the plating bath until full brightness resumes.
4.  Burnt deposit especially on corners and edges. Nodular in extreme cases.
 a)  Amp setting too high. Decrease the amp setting.
b)  Article too close to the anode. Move the item in the beaker or rearrange the anodes.
c)  Low copper content evident in clearness of solution. Add Copper Electroforming Replenisher at 40 grams for every litre. Repeat until original solution colour has returned.
d)  Too little agitation. Increase agitation.
e)  Temperature too low. Increase temperature. Please note that deposit will become less bright if the temperature is raised over 25 centigrade.
5.  Matt deposit, rough in extreme cases.
 a)  Particulate contamination especially in small installations without continuous filtration. Filter solution into a clean beaker/container.
6.  Pitting of deposit – small holes which can become larger on further plating.
 a)  Air bubbles originating from bare rod electrodes Fit anode bags.
b)  Particulate matter in solution. Filter.
c)  Grease or oil contamination in solution. Treat with Carbon Powder as above.
7.  Unplated area (step or skip plating).
 a)  Improper cleaning Check cleaning cycle especially for water breaks (see Online Manual)
8.  Unplated areas especially in tight recesses.
 a)  Air bubbles sticking to workpiece. Air bubbles can escape from the top of anode bags due to the level of solution being too high.

b)  Air bubbles can also form if mechanical stirring action is too high causing a vortex.

c)  Caused by air agitation.

d)  Air can also be introduced via continual filtration especially if the filter is blocked and or the filter is dragging air in due to unsecured connection(s).

 Check the level of solution is below the top of the anode bag.

 

 

Turn the stirring action down on your hotplate stirrer/stirrer.

Consider switching to a mechanically agitated system (stirrer or hotplate stirrer).

Reduce the rate of filtration and/or change the inline filter. Ensure all connections are secure.
9.  Vertical tide marks especially evident on thin, flat articles.
 a)  Laminar nature of agitation especially when stirring. Consider using a stirrer with reversing action in order to make the agitation more turbulent.
10. Streaking of deposit.
 a)  Excessive brightener additions. Plate out without adding brightener.
b)  Organic contamination. Treat with Carbon Powder as above.
c)  Contaminated rises or lack of rinsing. Extend rinsing cycle.
11.  Deposit peels from basis metal.
 a)  Improper cleaning. Check the cleaning cycle for the metal (see Online Manual).
b)  Check the type of metal being plated. Consider gold flash intermediate coating especially of plating on brass, steel or stainless steel (refer to Online Manual for a list of pre-treatment stages).

Fault diagnosis when plating on non-conducting materials (electroforming)

Fault

Possible cause

Corrective action
1.  No plating at all.
 a)  Conductive silver layer fusing at the point where the conducting wire/gig contacts the applied conductive silver layer. Re-apply the conductive paint/ink paying special attention to the the part where the part where the wire/gig contacts the silver paint/ink.

Start off at a lower current (half the recommended current) for 5 minutes to allow the part to become more conductive. The raise the current to the recommended current.

Please note that this problem is more common when metalising surfaces with Conductive Ink (hi-grade) as the layer is a lot thinner than Conductive Paint.
b)  Conductive silver layer not dried properly. Leave to dry overnight. If using Conductive Ink (hi-grade) refer to its product page for further information on drying.
c)  For other possible causes, see above.
2.  Patchy plating with unplated areas.
 a)  Conductive silver layer not dried properly. Refer to 1b above.
b)  Silver layer too thin to be conductive. This problem occurs more when using Conductive Ink (hi-grade). Reapply conductive silver layer.
c)  Silver paint/ink not shaken enough prior to application resulting in a weakly conductive suspension. Make sure to shake the bottle well before application.
d)  For other possible causes, see above.
3.  Deposit, including conductive silver layer, peeling from the workpiece. Indicated by a silver colour on the layer that has peeled.
 a)  The composition of the workpiece is incompatible with the binder in the ink. Consider applying an intermediate layer to the workpiece that is compatible with both the workpiece and conductive silver layer.
b)  Ink not keying to the workpiece. Provide keying sites by lightly abrading the workpiece.
4.  Unplated areas especially in tight recesses.
 a)  Also refer to 8a above.
This problem is encountered more when plating onto painted/sprayed silver layers rather than metallic surfaces.
This is due to the hydrophobic nature of the surface.b)  This problem is regularly encountered when spraying due to the difficulty to get the spray into recesses.		 Increase the rate of agitation if possible. Tap the work hard during plating to dislodge any air bubbles. Use a pipette filled with plating solution to squirt solution at the workpiece during plating. Spend longer when spraying on to recessed articles.
5.  Failure to plate on edges of article especially when using Conductive Ink (hi-grade) and/or spraying as opposed to painting.
 a)  Paint or ink pulling back at edges due to surface tension effects. Try to increase the thickness of coating applied at the edges of the workpiece.
Allow the coating to dry and add further coating(s).

Plating on surfaces metalised by painting/spraying Conductive Silver Paint or Conductive Ink (hi-grade)

  • Usually there’s no need to clean the article. Immerse it directly in CopperPro and plate according to the parameters outlined by the CopperPro Calculator.
  • It’s good practice—especially when metallizing a surface with high-grade conductive ink—to start with lower amperage for the first five minutes. This helps prevent the conductive silver film from fusing at the interface between the film and the wire or gig holding the piece. This is discussed in greater detail under the FAQs tab.
  • See notes below and FAQs.

Plating on zinc (also see notes below)

  • Degrease
  • Electroclean
  • Rinse
  • Microetch in Activator for 20 – 30 seconds
  • Rinse
  • Plate for 5 minutes at plating factor 0.01 A/cm2

You can now leave the surface with its matt/satin finish or hand polish using Autosol.
You can also apply either tank or brush plated layers.
If the item is likely to be used outdoors, then we advise a copper layer of 5 – 10 microns
which can be plated quickly using CopperPro Plating Solution.
If nickel tank plating, polishing may not be necessary as the nickel brightens as it plates.

Plating on to Aluminium

  • Degrease
  • Electroclean
  • Rinse
  • Zincate in Zincate Dip for 30 seconds to 2 minutes
  • Rinse
  • Plate for 5 minutes at plating factor 0.01 A/cmhttps://www.goldn.co.uk/product/zincate-dip-uk-and-eu

The same post plating options apply as for zinc above.

Plating on to steel

  • Degrease and remove any traces of rust
  • Electroclean
  • Rinse
  • Dip in Activator or ActiClean for 30 seconds – 1 minute
  • Rinse
  • Plate for 3 – 5 minutes at plating factor 0.01 A/cm
  • Rinse and plate in CopperPro Plating Solution to the thickness you require

Plating on to brass, bronze, pewter and other tin based alloys

  • Degrease
  • Electroclean
  • Rinse
  • Dip in Activator or ActiClean for 30 seconds – 1 minute
  • Rinse and plate in CopperPro Plating Solution to the thickness you require

Notes
1) Please note that the Activator dip should be kept exclusive to a single metal for example, if the Activator
has been used for zinc, it is not advisable to use the same solution for steel.
2) Most zinc is cast and contains surface impurities that need to be mechanically removed to achieve good adhesion.
This can be done in a variety of ways including abrading, polishing or tumbling in a barrel with abrasive medium added.
Poorly prepared zinc usually results in deposits which bubble up.
3) For maximum adhesion, we advise a quick power clean (30 seconds) followed by a dip in Activator or Acticlean after plating with CopperPro Plating Solution and before continuing to any further plating process.
4) When plating on to a silver metalised surface, especially a sprayed silver surface where the layer if quite thin, it’s best practice when starting plating to start at a lower current (amps) for a few minutes to minimise the chance of the conductive surface fusing between the plating jig (usually jigging wire) and the silver surface.

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