What Is 24k Gold Used For

Data from the usgs mineral commodity summaries for 2019.

What is 24k gold used for.

The gold used for rings bracelets watches and other fine jewelry is rarely 100 pure gold instead it comes in a variety of different purity levels. In a pure form it is a bright slightly reddish yellow dense soft malleable and ductile metal chemically gold is a transition metal and a group 11 element it is one of the least reactive chemical elements and is solid under. A karat is 1 24 part of pure gold by weight so 24 karat gold is pure gold. A karat or carat is a unit used to measure the purity and quality of gold.

This pie chart shows how gold was used in the united states in 2019 not including gold bullion. Contrary to popular belief there s no single type of gold used for all gold jewelry. Gold is very flexible and is used in many industries for various purposes depending on the purity. The most common gold purity levels are 10k karat 14k 18k and 24k.

24k gold is bright yellow 99 9 to 100 pure gold that is not mixed with any other metal. It s also the preferred form of gold for investors who often purchase 24k gold as bars bullion and coins. Proof gold is even finer with over 99 95 purity but it is only used for standardization purposes and is not. And the only way to do that is to reduce the amount of gold used.

Common uses for gold. The purity or fineness of gold in the jewelry is indicated by its karat number 24 karat 24k or 24 kt gold is as pure as gold gets for jewelry. To find the percentage of gold in an object when the purity. Gold that is 24k is also called fine gold and is greater than 99 7 pure gold.

24k gold is 99 99 pure meaning it contains no alloyed metals. 14k gold for example is fourteen twenty fourths pure or 58 3. Why 24k gold is rarely used for. Its purity makes it very soft and pliable and.

Many industries use gold for jewelry making all the way to food applications. The higher the karat rating of the purest possible being 24 karats the less the gold has been mixed with other metals such as silver or copper to make a gold alloy. The minting of official coins accounted for 8 of the gold used and 5 was for other uses. Gold is a chemical element with the symbol au from latin.

Instead 24k gold is often used for decorative wedding jewelry particularly in countries such as china vietnam singapore and thailand. The difference in purity between 24k and 14k gold results in different levels of hardness affecting how these two materials are used in jewelry. As we know 24k gold is pure so the other numbers in common use 22k 18k 14k 10k all denote a gold purity relative to 24k. Uses of gold in the united states.

Although over 75 of the gold used every year is made into jewelry there are other uses. Aurum and atomic number 79 making it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. The main uses were in jewelry 50 and electronics 37.