Top 4 Ways of Testing the Purity of Gold

Posted on: 2 November 2015

The jewellery market has seen more of gold ornaments through the years as the demand increases. However, despite the appetite for gold jewellery either for aesthetic or trade purposes, some buyers don't fully understand how to measure the purity of gold.

This article looks at some of the ways you can use to test the purity of the gold in the jewellery you are buying.

The Acid Test

Nitric acid has been used by gold refiners over time to test the quality and purity of the gold they have before putting it up for sale. The process is pretty simple and it can be done at home, making it more convenient and cheap. All you do is to make a tiny scratch on the surface of the gold, and then add a drop the nitric acid to see the reaction.

Genuine gold doesn't react with the acid, hence the drop of liquid nitric acid will remain colourless on the surface. On the other hand, fake gold will turn green at the point of contact with the acid.

The Magnet Test

This is also a test you can conduct at home or on the go, because you only require a magnet, which you can even carry around in your pocket. Genuine gold doesn't attract a magnet, while gold imitations and other alloys do. There is some jewellery which appear to be pure gold when in real sense they is just coated with a gold film and the rest is a totally different metal. The magnet will help reveal the nature of the underlying metal.

The Float Test

This test only requires a cup of water. Irrespective of the size, genuine gold sinks to the bottom of any type of liquid, because the density of gold is 19.32 grams per cubic centimetre. Fake gold or a combination of alloys will float or hover just above the bottom of the container before finally resting on the bottom. In addition, pure gold neither discolours nor rusts when wet.

Skin Test

Hold the gold piece in question for a few minutes in your hand, and see if the perspiration it comes into contact with causes a chemical reaction, making your skin turn into a green or black colour. If it does, this should tell you that the gold piece is an imitation and not genuine gold because pure gold doesn't react with the skin.

In addition to these methods, you may enquire the services of professional consultants, such as those at PMT Pty Ltd, to help you conduct further tests on the purity of the gold.

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