What is Gold?

Native gold is an element and a mineral. It is highly prized by people because of its attractive

colour, resistance to tarnish and its many special properties - some of which are unique to gold.

Its rarity, usefulness and desirability make it command a high price.

Trace amounts of gold are found almost everywhere but large deposits are found in only a few

locations. Although there are about twenty different gold minerals all of them are quite rare.

Therefore, most gold found in nature is in the form of the native metal.

Gold occurs in hydrothermal veins deposited by ascending solutions; as disseminated particles

through some sulphide deposits and in placer deposits.

Uses of Gold

Most mined gold is stored as bullion. It is also, however, used extensively in jewellery, either in

its pure form or as an alloy. The term carat indicates the amount of gold present in an alloy. 24-

carat is pure gold, but it is very soft. 18- and 9-carat gold alloys are commonly used because they

are more durable.

The metal is also used for coinage, and has been used as standard for monetary systems in some

countries.

Gold can be beaten into very thin sheets (gold leaf) to be used in art, for decoration and as

architectural ornament. Electroplating can be used to cover another metal with a very thin layer

of gold. This is used in gears for watches, artificial limb joints, cheap jewellery and electrical

connectors. It is ideal for protecting electrical copper components because it conducts electricity

well and does not corrode (which would break the contact). Thin gold wires are used inside

computer chips to produce circuits.

Dentists sometimes use gold alloys in fillings, and a gold compound is used to treat some cases

of arthritis.

Gold nanoparticles are increasingly being used as industrial catalysts. Vinyl acetate, which is

used to make PVA (for glue, paint and resin), is made using a gold catalyst.
Properties of Gold
Most metallic artefacts recovered by archaeologists are fashioned from either gold or silver,

which are thought to be the first metals to be worked by humans. They are both relatively easy to

reclaim from the rocks in which theyre found, and are easy to work. Gold is extremely

unreactive and doesnt tarnish like most other metals. Consequently, gold jewellery can survive

essentially unchanged for thousands of years.

Gold is also extremely heavy, with a density of 19.4 g cm-3. The density of lead, by comparison,

is only 11.4 g cm-3. Its heaviness plays a crucial part in many of the physical methods used to

extract gold from its various sources.

Gold is the most malleable (something is malleable when it is easily beaten into a thin film)

element there is. Just 1g of gold (the size of a grain of rice) can be beaten into a thin film

covering 1 square metre.

Gold is also extremely ductile (something is ductile when it is capable of being drawn out as a

wire under tension without breaking.)

Pure gold is also a very soft metal. It will scratch easily, and its therefore unsuitable in its pure

state for use as coinage or jewellery. For these purposes its usually alloyed with other metals

such as silver, copper and zinc.