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You wanted to know about Gold
What is Gold ?
Gold is a remarkable, rare metal, with an unparalleled combination of chemical and physical properties. Gold's chemical symbol, Au, comes from the Latin word for gold, aurum.
Properties of Gold
Gold is the most non-reactive of all metals. It is called a "noble" metal (an alchemistic term) because it does not oxidize under ordinary conditions, meaning that it will never rust and never tarnish.
It has a specific gravity of 19.3, which means it weighs 19.3 times as much as an equal volume of water.
History of Gold
In 1869, gold was discovered at Coleman Creek in the mountains on the eastern edge of San Diego County. A gold-mining boom led to the settlement and growth of the mining town of Julian.
One third of the world's gold is mined in South Africa. Other sources for gold are Australia, Russia, and the United States.
Uses of Gold
Gold was one of the very first metals to be mined in all of human history. Gold's ductility and malleability lend the metal to uses in decorations, jewelry, masks, cups, diadems, beads etc.
Gold is valued for its beauty and rarity.
Purity of Gold
The purest form of Gold considered 24 karats is equal to roughly 99.9 percent purity.
Why 18 carat Gold is best?
The very highest quality 18 carat gold.
It is usual for gold to be mixed with other metals to produce an alloy, which is simply a mixture of two or more metals
The traditional way to describe the proportion of gold in alloys is in "carats". A carat is 1/24, that is 1 part in 24 by weight.
18 carat is therefore 18/24 or 3/4 gold. In recent years it has become common to refer to alloys millesimally, that is in "parts per thousand". Eighteen carat gold is therefore 750 parts per thousand.
Websites:
7. www.newmont.com/en/about/gold/whatis/index.asp
10. www.worldmetalexchange.com
You wanted to know about Silver
What is Silver?
Silver is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft white lustrous transition metal, silver has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal and occurs in minerals and in free form. This metal is used in coins, jewelry, tableware, and photography.
Application of Silver
The most important alloy of this element is silver, traditionally used in producing Coins. Nowadays this alloy was replaced by a cheaper alloy, Copper- Nickel. There are other silver alloys used in producing radiators for the automobile industry, and in producing musical instruments.
History of Silver
Silver is second only to gold in many respects. Silver is known by the mankind since Pre-History, and its discovery is estimated happened to shortly after that of Copper and Gold. The oldest reference to the element appears in the book of Genesis. Above all, silver is a most attractive metal widely used in the jewellery trade.
Uses of Silver
The uses of silver stem its unique properties comprising anti-bacterial qualities, corrosion resistance, ductility, reflectivity and conductivity have resulted in ever increasing possibilities for a myriad of other industrial applications, to add to its traditional uses in jewellery and photography.
Occurrence
The main silver mineral is the argentite(Ag2S), which usually occurs associated to other sulfides as copper or lead sulfide.
Most of the produced silver is a by-product of the extraction process of these metals.
The largest world producers of silver are the USA, Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, former-USSR, Australia and Germany.
Purity of Silver
Silver is extremely malleable and must be alloyed with other metals to retain shape. Therefore, most sterling silver jewelry is 92.5% pure silver. To make sure, check the silver mark on the piece which will say .925 to guarantee authenticity.
Why Buy Silver?
The shiniest of all of the precious metals, Silver jewelry is not only beautiful, but is extremely affordable. If you like the look of platinum, but cannot afford the price tag, silver jewelry is a great alternative. No wonder why silver is the most popular jewelry among young adults.
Websites:
1. www.australiana.org/silversoc.htm
4. www.thesilvervaults.com/fact_sheet
8. www.amergold.com/vault/americansilvereagles.shtml
You wanted to know about Platinum
What is Platinum?
Platinum is a white metal, but unlike gold it is used in jewelry in almost its pure form (approximately 95% pure). Platinum is extremely long wearing and is very white, so it does not need to be rhodium plated like white gold does.
History of Platinum
Two billion years ago, long before the age of dinosaurs, when life on this planet is nothing more than simple bacteria, an enormous meteorite crashes to Earth in North America. This is the earliest known meteorite impact. Meteorites, the product of a supernova – an explosion of an enormous star ,are rich in metals such as platinum.
Uses of Platinum
- Platinum used in jewelry, wire, and vessels for laboratory use, and also in many important precious devices and instruments, which include therocouple elements.
- Platinum can be used as an excellent catalyst during the process of producing sulfuric acid.
- Platinum is also used for electrical contacts, corrosion-resistant apparatus, and in dentistry.
- The result of this production is used to produce cigarette lighters and hand warmer.
Platinum is Pure
Platinum jewelry contains either 90% or 95% pure platinum. By comparison, 18 karat gold is 75% pure and 14 karat is 58% pure gold. Platinum will never tarnish or lose its rich white luster.
Platinum is Strong
Platinum is the heaviest of the precious metals, weighing almost twice as much as karat gold. Its strength ideally secures diamonds and other precious gems.
Platinum is Fashionable
Platinum is very fashionable to wear Platinum with your gold jewelry. In fact, many Platinum designs combine the two metals. Platinum's white color beautifully contrasts with yellow gold and adds versatility to your jewelry wardrobe.
Websites:
4. www.americanaustralian.org/
7. www.americanplatinumexchange.com/
8. www.platinuminterchange.com
You wanted to know about Palladium
What is Palladium?
Palladium is a chemical element with symbol Pd and atomic number 46. A rare silver-white transition metal of the platinum group, palladium resembles platinum chemically and is extracted from some copper and nickel ores. It is primarily used as an industrial catalyst and in jewelry.
Characteristics of Palladium
Palladium is the least dense and lowest melting of the Platinum Group Metals. It is a silver-white metal and does not tarnish in air.
Palladium is chemically attacked by sulfuric and nitric acid but dissolves slowly in hydrochloric acid. This metal also does not react with oxygen at normal temperatures.
History of Palladium
The history of palladium naturally starts with the history of platinum and the platinum group metals of which palladium is a member. Palladium was finally isolated from platinum and identified as a separate elemental metal in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, a brilliant researcher who made many contributions to science.
Uses of Palladium
Palladium is extensively used in jewelry. It may be used either on its own of as an element of "white gold". "White gold" is obtained when palladium is added to gold, with or without other elements.
The second largest demand sector for palladium is electronics.
Palladium is widely used in dental alloys. Since patients had to pay more or in advance for dental care, they reduced their use of more expensive palladium.
Websites:
2. www.london-palladium.co.uk/
6. www.worldmetalexchange.com/
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