text: The part to be coated is immersed in a bath of electrolyte which usually consists of a dilute alkaline solution such as KOH.  It is electrically connected, so as to become one of the electrodes in the electrochemical cell, with the other "counter-electrode" typically being made from an inert material such as stainless steel, and often consisting of the wall of the bath itself. 
  Potentials of over 200 V are applied between these two electrodes.  These may be continuous or pulsed direct current (DC) (in which case the part is simply an anode in DC operation), or alternating pulses (alternating current or "pulsed bi-polar" operation) where the stainless steel counter electrode might just be earthed.