Rhodium plating refers to the process of depositing a thin layer of the chemical element rhodium (Rh) onto a conductive metal surface. As a chemical element, rhodium is a particularly rare substance, and features a silver-white color. A very hard and chemically inert element, rhodium is a transition metal and is categorized as being part of the platinum group metals (PGMs), meaning that rhodium has the shared characteristics of excellent catalytic properties and wear-resistance.
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Mil-Spec Metal Finishing Inc.Edgewater, FL 866-364-2535 For the superior rhodium plating you need, contact Mil-Spec Metal Finishing. With an extensive line of products they also provide additional services including glass beading, heat treatment, masking and selective plating on certain areas to ensure a high quality finished product. For the best service, products and costs available in the industry, call Mil-Spec Metal Finishing.
Imagineering Finishing Technologies™ WorldwideSouth Bend, IN 800-207-2516 Imagineering Finishing technologies strives to deliver the most cost-effective and innovative engineered metal finishing solutions to customers. They are able to reach this goal by meeting customer requirements with highly controlled quality processes in a time-certain manner the first time. For all of your project goals and all of your rhodium plating orders, contact Imagineering today!
Klein Plating Works, Inc.Erie, PA 814-452-3793 At Klein Plating Works, their extensive experience allows them to be leaders in their industry. They have the resources to service large production runs, small lots, large molds/casting, prototypes/samples, small and delicate parts, and a broad range of substances. For all your rhodium plating jobs, they have the capabilities and flexibility to create the exact product you need.
Whitman Company, Inc.Whitman, MA 800-783-2433 The goal of the Whitman Company is to become a world-class company by continuously improving their business and production processes. They understand that a customer's reputation depends on their performance. It is this constant goal of striving for only the best that makes their reputation second to none. For all of your rhodium plating projects, call Whitman Company.
Saporito Finishing Co.Cicero, IL 708-222-5300 Saporito Finishing Company is constantly striving to maintain high standards in areas of environmental regulation. They want to make sure that their methods don't harm the future generations. For further information about our wide range of finishes, including rhodium plating, other metal finishing processes or consulting services can help you improve your next project, call today.
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Due to its many advantageous properties, rhodium is often utilized in plating processes in order to endow other metals with its beneficial characteristics, most commonly for protective purposes. As a result, rhodium plating is a typical process in many industries including: commercial, where it is widely used for jewelry for plating on materials such as white gold and platinum; medical, in which plating is used to give optical instruments extremely hard surfaces; electronics, used to protect sensitive electrical instruments such as electrical contacts and capacitors; industrial manufacturing, in order to strengthen weak materials for processing (although it is a very expensive option); and telecommunications, for the surface protection of devices such as mobile phones. However, although there are multiple practical applications, rhodium plating is most commonly utilized for decorative purposes.
Not able to maintain plating for a long-duration, rhodium is most commonly plated using an electroplating process. In the jewelry industry, this process is known as rhodium flashing. In rhodium electroplating, the surface of a metal object is coated with a layer of a rhodium through electrochemical means, which means that both a chemical solution and an electric current are utilized in order to enable deposition. However, although it is not as common, rhodium plating may also be performed utilizing an electroless plating process. In electroless rhodium plating, an electrical current is not utilized whatsoever; instead, the process depending entirely upon a chemical reaction. In this chemical reaction, the rhodium is immersed in an aqueous solution that is often referred to as a bath solution. Without an electrical current, the rhodium reacts as a result of the introduction of a reducing agent into the bath solution. The reducing agent, which is typically something like sodium hypophosphite, functions to release hydrogen and causing the rhodium's ions to react and to be produce a negative surface charge that results in deposition. The addition of rhodium to any other metallic surface provides a very hard and reflective, white-colored surface.