Method for producing electrical steel sheet

A method for producing an electrical steel sheet comprising:

• a pickling process of bringing the electrical steel sheet containing, by mass %, C:
• more than 0% and 0.10% or less, Si:
• 2.5% or more and 4.5% or less, Mn:
• 0.01% or more and 5.0% or less, a total of one or more of S, Se, and Te:
• more than 0% and 0.050% or less, acid soluble Al:
• more than 0% and 5.0% or less, N:
• more than 0% and 0.015% or less, and P:
• more than 0% and 1.0% or less and having a balance of Fe and impurities, wherein the electrical steel sheet optionally contains, in place of part of the Fe, one or more of Cu:
• 1.0% or less, Sn:
• 1.0% or less, Ni:
• 1.0% or less, Cr:
• 1.0% or less, Sb:
• 1.0% or less, and Bi:
• 1.0% or less, into contact with a liquid solution,
• the solution containing, by mass %, one or more of Cu, Hg, Ag, Pb, Cd, Co, Zn, and Ni, in a total concentration of 0.00001% or more and 1.0000% or less,
• a pH of the solution is −1.5 or more and less than 7, a solution temperature is 15° C. or more and 100° C. or less, and a time during which the electrical steel sheet contacts the solution is 5 seconds or more and 200 seconds or less,
• the electrical steel sheet contains MnS, MnSe, and MnTe before contact with the solution, and
• upon or after contact with the solution, Mn of one or more of the MnS, MnSe, and MnTe at surface layers of the electrical steel sheet is substituted by one or more of the Cu, Hg, Ag, Pb, Cd, Co, Zn, and Ni.