Galvanic tin-plating

Tin is a silvery white, lustrous metal, whose shine does not become dulled, even during storage. It is highly resistant to atmospheric influences. With the exception of nitric acid, there are hardly any dilute inorganic and organic acids that attack it. It is non-toxic and resistant to most food and beverage products, so the food industry is consequently one of its main applications areas (as tinplate).

Secondly, it is used for improving the conductivity and solderability of copper and brass articles in the electrical engineering and electronic industries (at the same time it helps prevent tarnishing). Due to the risk of whisker formation in tin-plated brass parts, an intermediate copper layer is generally required. These whiskers (fibres) can be more than 100 μm long and may result in malfunctions in miniaturized electronic devices.