I had a curious young gentleman with the age of 6 in
my office the other day. He had a series
of questions that begun on his entry and continued through his mother finishing
sell gold, gold jewelry and silver coins until the bright young man
walked out the door. The most
interesting question he had was, “Why is gold yellow?”
I know, I know, there is white gold but the boy was
correct in his question. My first
response is to answer your thought, “There is white gold.” Well let me say that the white gold and the
yellow gold are the SAME element. It
exists in its own state as yellow and only becomes white when we mix it with
higher quantities of nickel and aluminum.
To answer his question on an elemental level and in
a simplified manor, the atom has neutrons and protons in its’ center. Electrons travel around the atom on the
outside perimeter. It is the electrons
that provide the surface unto which we see and touch. These electrons travel in “valence bands.” The closer these bands the less light it
absorbs. In gold they are very close and
only blue light can pass through them causing the opposite light to be
reflected. It’s the reflected light that
we see. The opposite color of blue is yellow and that is the color everyone
sees.
Who can tell me what the atomic symbol for platinum is? Bet you can't without looking it up.
Kevin Robbins,
Gold
Solutions http://www.goldsolutionsoffortmyers.com/contact.html#.USTuKFojpws
