- 1). Fill a large Pyrex dish with 1/2 l of distilled white vinegar.
- 2). Place a zinc anode into the vinegar and allow it to sit for a few hours. This will give the zinc a chance to dissolve.
- 3). Measure 50 g of epsom salt on a kitchen scale and add to the vinegar and zinc solution. The salt will help the liquid better conduct electricity.
- 4). Add 60 g of sugar to the mixture.
- 5). Clean a penny with a toothbrush and toothpaste and rinse well. Wear gloves when handling the clean penny to avoid soiling the penny with oils from your skin.
- 6). Tape one end of a length of copper wire to the positive side of a flashlight battery and tape the other end to the zinc anode. Use electrical tape to secure the wire to the battery and anode.
- 7). Attach another length of copper wire to the battery. Secure the other end of the wire to a shiny penny.
- 8). Submerge the zinc anode and the penny in the vinegar and salt solution; don't allow them to touch one another.
- 9). Soak the penny until it begins to form a silvery coating. At this point, you've successfully electroplated your penny.
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