Oxidized silver
Silver is a precious metal that is in great demand in the jewelry market. This is due to both its unique properties and affordability.
Silver jewelry is in perfect harmony with any scattering of precious stones, ideal for almost all the fair sex. Moreover, this the type of metal is resistant to various jewelry treatments, including the oxidation process. Let's take a closer look at what this method of changing the appearance of the metal is.
What it is?
Silver oxidation is a procedure using special chemicals, during which the surface of the metal is covered with a protective film consisting of silver oxide.
As a result of this processing method, the decoration changes color, becomes resistant to adverse external influences.
Oxidized metal processing has two significant advantages.
- The appearance of silver jewelry is radically changed.
- The resistance of the metal to the negative effects of the external environment increases.
Special solution, in which the direct oxidation process is carried out, is prepared separately. It has a specific shelf life of 24 hours. After a day, it is no longer recommended to use the solution, as it loses its properties. The product is processed by heating a chemical liquid.
The result of dyeing silver depends on the temperature of the solution: the higher it is, the more saturated the color of the product will be.
During processing, oxidized silver can acquire one of 4 possible color options: blue, gray, purple or black. It all depends on the moment at which jewelry exposed to this method of chemical attack will be removed from the working solution.
How is oxidation going?
Silver oxidation is a multistep process that includes several sequential steps.
- Preparation of a special solution.
- The silver piece is placed in a chemical liquid.
- The solution is heated. In this case, it is necessary to control the interaction of the metal and chemicals that make up the working solution.
- After the completion of the process, the product is removed from the solution using a special device made of wood, cooled and thoroughly washed in ordinary water.
To prepare the solution required for metal oxidation, you should use sulfuric liver, which is a mixture of potassium carbonate with potassium sulfide (percentage 1 to 1 or 1 to 2). The listed components are mixed in water until they are completely dissolved, and then the resulting solution is heated to a temperature of 80-90 degrees.
Before you expose silver to oxidation, it must be carefully wipe with alcohol or gasoline. This will allow it to be degreased and prepared for processing.
If staining is supposed to be done only on one specific area of the product, then using a tampon or brush, the solution is applied only to this selective area of the processed decoration.
In the case when the color of the entire product changes, then the entire silver jewelry is immersed in a chemical liquid... Successful fixation of the obtained result is possible only with a gradual decrease in the temperature of the metal after oxidized treatment.
At the end of the oxidation procedure, the surface of the silver jewelry is treated with chalk and wiped with a cloth made of felt... To consolidate the result obtained, the finished product is polished.
If the jewelry is inlaid with precious stones, then there is no need to worry about the integrity of the item during oxidation.
During processing, only metal (silver) enters into a chemical reaction, and the appearance of the stones will remain unchanged.
In specialized workshops, oxidation is carried out using electrolytic deposition... The chemical liquid in which the silver processing will take place is heated to only 18-22 degrees. The immersion time of silver in the solution is no more than half an hour. After oxidation, the jewelry is dried at a temperature of 60-70 degrees Celsius.
Features of the result
During oxidation, silver jewelry passes through processing with sulfur, due to which silver acquires a brighter and more saturated shade. Due to the formed protective film, new colors appear, which remain for a long time.
Polishing allows you to highlight the convex parts of the product, as they return to their natural shine, and the concave parts acquire a pronounced dark shade.
The resulting protective layer has an increased level of strength, therefore, the silver will be protected from various kinds of adverse factors from the outside. Besides, thanks to the surface layer, the silver will not darken.
Oxidized silver is maintenance-free... However, if it becomes necessary to clean the silver jewelry, you need to be extremely careful, because the use of brushes can damage the thin protective layer.
Therefore, it is recommended either to use the services of a jewelry workshop, or to carry out a gentle cleaning with a dry cloth and rags treated with soapy water.
Unfortunately, over time, the protective oxidized layer tends to become thinner, therefore after a certain period of time, it is recommended to repeat the sulfur treatment procedure.
See the following video for the silver oxidation process.
