Electroplating Cell & Faraday's Law
Plate an object with copper, silver, nickel, zinc or gold and calculate the mass and thickness from the current.
Drag the orange slider on the wire to set the current, press Start, and watch metal ions travel to the object and coat it.
About the Electroplating Cell & Faraday's Law
Free electroplating cell & faraday's law. Plate an object with copper, silver, nickel, zinc or gold and calculate the mass and thickness from the current. Drag, change the sliders and see the result live. No sign-up, works on phone and computer. Built for electrochemistry, the electroplating cell & faraday's law runs instantly in your browser: change a setting or drag an object and the result updates at once, so you learn by trying things out rather than only reading about them.
Plate an object with copper, silver, nickel, zinc or gold and calculate the mass and thickness from the current. Use it to explore electrochemistry ideas at your own pace, then check what you found against the key ideas further down this page.
How to use the Electroplating Cell & Faraday's Law
- Use the controls to change Plating metal, Current, Surface area of object. The simulation reacts instantly.
- Pick an option such as Copper, Silver, Nickel, Zinc to switch modes or load an example.
- Press "Start plating", "Pause", "Reset" to start, reset or change what is happening.
- Where you see a glowing handle, object, weight or atom, drag it with your mouse or finger. Everything responds in real time.
- Watch the readouts and graphs update as you experiment, and compare what you see with the key ideas below.
Things to try
- Plate for 30 minutes at 3 A with copper, then silver.
- Double the current and check the mass doubles.
- Make the area smaller and see the coating get thicker.
Key ideas you can learn
- The anode dissolves and the cathode object gets coated.
- Mass deposited = M × I × t ÷ (n × F).
- More current or more time deposits more metal.
- Metals that need more electrons per ion (like gold, n = 3) deposit less mass per coulomb.
Where this is used in the real world
Jewellery, chrome car parts, tin cans, circuit boards and anti-corrosion coatings on steel are all made by electroplating.
Who is this simulation for?
Chemistry students studying redox, batteries and electrolysis, and teachers who want a clear picture of where the electrons go.
For teachers: project it on the board, let students predict what will happen, then run it together. For students: change one thing at a time and write down what changes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Faraday's law of electrolysis?
The mass of metal deposited is proportional to the charge passed: m = M I t / (n F), with F = 96485 C/mol.
Why is the object made the cathode?
Metal cations gain electrons at the cathode, so the metal is deposited there.
Is the Electroplating Cell & Faraday's Law free to use?
Yes. It is completely free, with no signup, no download and no ads inside the simulation. It runs in your web browser.
Does the Electroplating Cell & Faraday's Law work on a phone or tablet?
Yes. It uses touch as well as the mouse, so you can drag objects with your finger. A larger screen makes the controls easier to see.