The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1873-07-16
Nickel

~ man A4--tA "a . % OEILl1l -ilF cT
have presented a petition 70 the
Reichstag against the Introduction Of
nickel coinage. They urge that
nickel has risen lately from II 10 4
thalers per pound, and that German
silver has within the last month gone
up $ thalers per ewt. Nickel i now
extensively employed IN the monetary
coinage Of Belgium, in the United
States Of America, and some other
countries The Swiss were the first
to adopt It, and introduced a quadru-
pie alloy, consisting Of copper. zinc.
nickel and silver, an ALLOW against
which grave objections might be rzi-
ed When Professor Graham was
master Of the Mint he proposed 10
employ nickel in our new copper COIN
age, but the then Cbaneellor Of the
Exehequer refused TO aeeede to the
proposition.
Nickel equivalent, 5S.s: density.
1919, first discovered BY Cronstedt.
IL l15l, Is associated with iron cobalt
II most Of the minerals which con
taiE Il Il L found in small ouanti-
ties n Cornwall, but our main SUD
plies are obtained from Norway.
Sweden, Germany, and other eoun-
tries- OF the whole quantity of ne
talie nickel used In Europe fabout
three hundred tons annually by far
the greater portion Is manufactured
II England 1t Is only recentlv that
nickel has become Of importance in
the useful arts, and Birmingham Is
sorely entitled 70 the credit Of having
orought us manufacture toits present
state Of fperfectiOn- II Is used as a
constituent Of alloys, principally with
the object Of impar1iDg whiteness. and
Is added 20 brass TO make an iuita-
ton Of silver this triple alloy. known
as German silver, Argentine plate.
paekfong, when plated with silver on
nickel, has the advantage over plated
copper Of not showing q red color
upon worn edges
\ nickel suffers little. if anr.change
BY exposure 10 air or moisture a. com
mon temperatures. eiectro-metallur-
gists and manufacturers turned their
early attention 10 the possibility Of
coating other metals with II bF eiec-
uo deposition but nickel is difical.
20 fuse, and from iis extreme brittle
Ness they deSpaired Of being able to
obtain al anode of the metal bv
which 70 supply the solution. Mr..
James Napier in the last edition OF
his Manual Of Electro Meiallurgv>
(ls57 says
The great difficulty is 10 obtain a
positive electrode the nickel is verv
difficult 10 fuse. and so brittle that we
have never been able to obtain plate
or sheet oft Could this difficulty
be overcome. the application of nickel
10 the coating OF metals would Be
Mr. Alfred Since. in the first edi-
tiOn OF bis Electro Netallurgv.-
published in ls4l. stated that be bad
effected the eleetro-deposition Of nick
el from q solution Of the metal in the
regaEne form. and between the years
lS40 and 1859, several patents Were
granted 10 inventors for "improved
processes for electro-Dlating with
nickel but without any beneficial or
practical results 1t was found that
different solutions could be made 20
furnish deposit Of metal sufficient
to exhibit its character, but that the
eleetro-plater could not obtain eoniin-
nous and uniform deposits from any
oi those solutions At length, in !
1859. the difficulty was overcome by
DR. Isaac Adams, Jr., Of Boston. He
was the first 10 establish that electro
plating with nickel is delicate cleo
Iro-ehemieal process. the success Of
which depends on q careful adjust I
nent Of the chemical forces involved, |
and be invented process Tor repair
ing, not chemically pure salt. bat a /
salt free from certain impurities; be
also ascertained that although in the
slectro-deposition Of silver and COP
per the success Of the manufacture
depends, in great measure, on the
mode being as pure As possible, nick
! forms remarkable exception 10
he rule, and that a continuous depo- I
sition cannot be obtained by the use
of a pure nickel anede IN any known
The process Of electro-plating other :
metals with nickel has now become I