how does silver polishing cloth work

[StEloise]

Hello there! That's a great question. While the provided context wasn't very helpful for answering, I can certainly explain the science behind how those handy cloths work.

Think of a silver polishing cloth as having a two-part cleaning system working together. First, it's about what the cloth is made of and treated with. The soft fabric, often cotton flannel, is impregnated with special compounds.

One of these compounds is a very, very fine micro-abrasive. When you rub the cloth on your silver, this abrasive gently scrubs away the thin layer of tarnish. Tarnish is actually silver sulfide, which forms when silver reacts with sulfur in the air. The abrasive physically removes that dark layer, which is why you see black residue coming off onto the cloth.

The second part of the system is a chemical cleaner, also embedded in the cloth's fibers. This chemical agent helps to dissolve and loosen the tarnish, making the abrasive's job much easier. Some cloths even include a tarnish-inhibiting agent that leaves behind an invisible layer to help protect the silver and slow down future tarnishing.

So, in a nutshell, the cloth works through a combination of a gentle physical scrubbing action and a chemical reaction to safely lift away the tarnish and restore your silver's brilliant shine.