IMPROVEMENTS IN ELECTRO PLATING WITH NICKEL AND COBALT
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Julius Boult, of the firm of WP Thompson
& Boult, Agents for Foreign Patent Solicitors, of 323 High Holborn in
the County of Middlesex and 6 Lord Street Liverpool in the County of
Lancaster, Engineer for an Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN ELECTRO PLATING
WITH NICKEL AND COBALT A communication to him from abroad by Joseph
Vandermersch of Bruxelles in the Kingdom of Belgium
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Julius Boult at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 6th November 1882.
ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of the firm of WP Thompson & Boult, Agents for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, of 323 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex and
6 Lord Street Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Engineer, "IMPROVEMENTS
IN ELECTROPLATING WITH NICKEL AND COBALT" [A communication to him
from abroad by Joseph Vandermersch of Bruxelles in the Kingdom of Belgium.]
Heretofore in plating articles made of, say, iron or copper with nickel, a very
thin film only of the latter metal, could bo deposited on the article to be plated;
this thin layer soon wears off especially when, as readily occurs with iron, oxidation
of the subjacent metal takes place.
Now the chief object of this invention is to obviate these difficulties and to
enable thick layers of nickel to be deposited by means of electricity.
In carrying this invention into practice I add to the bath of any suitable nature
with a base of sulphate of nickel one or several acids which are capable of
rectifying the impurities of the deposit and to provide at the negative pole a white
and pure metal of excellent quality which also adheres strongly. Such acids are
benzoic, salicylic, boric gallic and pyrogallic acid and others having similar
properties.
The bath with such addition, though it considerably improves the deposit yet
produces only a thin layer, just as the usual sulphate of ammonia bath. To the
bath prepared as aforesaid, I add pure or ordinary sulphuric acid in the proportion of
about ten drops to the litre, or I may use sulphurous perchloric, chloric formic lactic,
n

page_text: acetic and other acids having similar properties and I thus am enabled to obtain a
deposit of Nickel of any desired thickness. For this purpose sulphuric acid is
preferable to the others.
The strength and proportions in which the bath is prepared may be varied, a
satisfactory result being always attained by the addition of acids to the bath as
and in the sequence above set forth.
The same process is also applicable to the deposition of Cobalt. Another
application consists in making the same additions to a bath of cobalt either as a
sulphate or as an anode or a nickel bath with cobalt as anodo which makes the
nickel harder and the body whiter, as however cobalt is more expensive this would
render nickel plating dearer.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Alfred Julius Boult in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
5th May 1883.
ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of the firm of W. P. Thompson and Boult, Agents for
Foreign Patent Solicitors of 323 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex and
6 Lord Street Liverpool in the County of Lancaster, Engineer "IMPROVEMENTS
IN ELECTRO PLATING WITH NICKEL AND COBALT a communication to me from
abroad by Joseph Vandermersch of Bruxelles, in the kingdom of Belgium
"
Nickeling has of late years undergone considerable developement and found
application in several very important branches of industry.
Nickel could heretofore be applied only in layers of from one to two hundredth
parts of a millimeter thickness by the galvanic processes heretofore known con-
sequently the iron or other metal which has received the precipitate of nickel soon
appears at the exposed parts, iron, by reason of its very ready oxidation when in
contact with moisture, especially tending to raise the nickel in a very little time.
This default in the nickel-plating industry has led to the search for appropriate
means for applying to metals thicker layers of nickel, resulting in the present
invention.
According to this invention I first add to the acid bath of any kind (with a baso
of sulphate of nickel) one or more acids which possess the virtue of correcting the
impurities of the deposit and to provide the negative pole with a metal of excellent
quality which is perfectly white and pure, as well as adherent. Such acids are;-
Benzoic Salycylic, boracic gallic, pyrogallic and others which possess similar
qualities,
The nickel precipitated by the baths to which these acids have been added, is of
excellent quality, but as heretofore continues to be deposited in thin films only,
just as with the very commonly used sulphate of ammonia bath.
Something else is therefore yet required if a perfect precipitate is to be obtained; for
this purpose proceed as follows. To the bath with the hereinabove indicated addition

page_text: further add ten drops, more or less, per liter of pure, or of ordinary sulphuric acid.
With a bath prepared in this manner nickel plating can be effected without any
obstacle to indefinitely increasing the precipitation; that is to say, the deposit of
nickel on the article to be plated may be rendered of any thickness and of any
desired weight.
The like is the case if to the first bath with the addition thereto, the requisite
proportion of sulphurious acid or of perchloric, chloric, formic, lactic acetic or other
acid is added having similar properties, with these thick and heavy nickel plating
is likewise obtained but this result is obtained in a less perfect manner and
sulphuric acid is preferable.
The degree of concentration of the baths and its proportions, depend entirely on
the pleasure of the operator the result is substantially the same when adding to
the baths either a greater quantity of nickel and a less quantity of added acids or
in diminishing the quantity of nickel and increasing the quantity of acids, or in
using different quantities in all particulars, the proportion of the acids as well as
that of the salts.
In fact whenever to the primitive bath one of the benzoic salycylic boracic
gallic, pyrogallic, or other acids, is added, adding afterwards a few drops of sulphuric
acid per liter, nickel plating will always be obtainable in any desired thickness and
in a perfect manner.
By the same process the application of cobalt can be attained with an equally
favorable result as that obtained with nickel. Another application consists in
adding to the nickol bath cobalt either as sulphate or as anode, or in a bath of
nickel with cobalt as anode, which has for effect of rendering the nickel harder
and whiter. However, as the cobalt is dearer, this renders nickel plating more
expensive.
According to the above described process of plating with nickel and with cobalt,
in considerable thickness it will be seen that there are employed 1. benzoic or
salycylic or other acids. 2. Sulphuric or sulphurous acid &°. The following remarks
will complete the description of this invention.
The benzoic, salycylic and boracic acids may be employed alone, when these
acids have sufficient conductivity. The above mentioned acids which have similar
properties namely which produce a perfectly puro deposit of nickel, are specially
the acids belonging to the aromatic and benzinic series (these acids being very
In their stead
numerous) and these operate with the best success for this process.
one may however add organic acids such as for instance tartaric acid, citric acid or
any other acid or even non-acid compounds, such as carbons hydrocarbons, phenols
amides, ethers, alcohols, whether compound, azotated or others whether liquid or
soluble in water, or previously dissolved in ether alcohol or some other body which
will not affect the bath.
This process is not only applicable to the sulphate of nickel as above described
but also to the chloride of nickel to ammonia sulphate, the nitrate or all the nickel
salts.
Instead of the benzoic or other acid any compounds of these acids may likewise
be used such as benzoates of calcium, borate of soda, or any salycylates,
The chlorides, bromides, Iodides or other compounds of these acids may also be
used instead.
In the second operation the sulphuric, sulphurous or other acid may be replaced
by compounds of the salts of these acids such as sulphates, nitrates, perchlorates of
any kind, and others. The sulphuric, lactic and other acid may be replaced by any
other acid, provided they contain oxygen and not only acids may be used for this
purpose, but also all bodies capable of being added to the bath, provided they
contain oxygen, such are the alcohols, ethers aldehydes, gums, sugars, creosote
glycose, glycerine and so forth.
The second operation may take place before the first, the same result being
obtained. Acids capable of furnishing in a single operation the deposit of required

page_text: thickness may if desired be employed such are for instance phosphoric acid per-
manganic, manganic acid or other acids which are highly oxygenated and which,
when added to the nickel salts of any kind give an unlimited deposit, but this
apparently simpler and less expensive result is far from equalling that of the
benzinic, aromatic, oxygenated compounds super-oxygenated by another body as
above described.
The oxygen may likewise be furnished to the bath for the second operation by
the ordinary chemical means or add dioxide of manganese (as above provided for)
but these means are less practicable than those that have been more fully above
set forth.
Salts may be added which develop the conductibility of the bath such as those
of sodium, bisulphite of soda or others; as the case. may be and according to
convenience.
It is however in all cases required as total result that the bath be so constituted
that it forms an ether, an alcohol, or an oxygenated acid or an oxygenated chemical
compound in such a manner that the bydrogen produced in consequence of the
decomposition of the water by the electric current, is absorbed by the composition
of the bath which is not then affected by this cause, or that it becomes disengaged
(combined or not combined) in such a manner that the negative pole shall not be
influenced by this hydrogen which in course of time would polarize it. In this
manner the nascent hydrogen is absorbed or eliminated, and the bettor this
oxygenation, or rather de-hydrogenation, is accomplished, the more the deposit of
nickel will be unbroken and brilliant.
Besides nickel and cobalt, copper brass, manganese, cadmium zinc and other
metals may be applied according to this invention.
Having now described this invention as communicated to me by my foreign
Correspondent I claim :-
:-
The invention substantially as described herein.
In witness whereof I the said Alfred Julius Boult have hereunto set my hand
and seal this fifth day of May in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty three.
ALFRED J. BOULI, (L.S.)