How does electrolysis produce silver particles?
This discussion of electrolysis assumes two silver electrodes are placed in deionized water a small distance apart. The electrodes are connected to a low voltage DC power source (9-30 VDC). The electrode connected to the positive (+) terminal is referred to as the anode, the electrode connected to the negative (-) terminal is referred to as the cathode. When electric current passes through silver, some silver atoms at the interface with the water will loose an electron changing the atom into an ion. Whereas metallic silver is not water soluble, silver ions are water soluble, so the silver ions simply dissolve in the water producing an ionic silver solution. This is the electrolysis process. With the electrolysis process, some of the ions in close proximity to the anode will take on an electron from the current passing through and be changed from an ion back into an atom. These atoms are attracted by other similar atoms by van der Waal’s force of attraction and thus form small metallic
