Electroplating

A method of coating one kind of metal with another. Cadmium is often plated on steel to make it corrosion resistant, and chromium can be plated on steel to make it hard and wear resistant. The steel is connected to the negative terminal of a direct current power supply, the cadmium or chromium is connected to the positive terminal, and both metals are immersed in an electrolyte. Ionized atoms of cadmium or chromium in the electrolyte are deposited on the steel, and these atoms are replaced from the cadmium or chromium electrode.