The melting point of gold, often referred to as its fusion point, is the temperature at which it changes from a solid to a liquid state. Gold has a relatively high melting point compared to many other metals, making it a useful material in various applications. The exact melting point of gold can vary slightly depending on the purity of the gold.
Pure gold, which is 24 karats, has a melting point of about 1,943 degrees Fahrenheit (1,062 degrees Celsius). However, most gold used in jewelry and other applications is not pure but is instead mixed with other metals to increase its strength and durability.
For example, 18-karat gold, which is 75% gold and 25% other metals, has a slightly lower melting point of about 1,674 degrees Fahrenheit (913 degrees Celsius). Similarly, 14-karat gold, which is 58.3% gold and 41.7% other metals, has a melting point of about 1,646 degrees Fahrenheit (896 degrees Celsius).
Gold’s high melting point makes it resistant to heat and allows it to be used in applications where other metals might deform or melt. This property, along with its attractive appearance and corrosion resistance, has made gold a valuable material for jewelry, electronics, and various industrial applications throughout history.
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Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from Latin: aurum) and atomic number 79, making it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. In its purest 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 standard conditions. Gold often occurs in free elemental (native) form, as nuggets or grains, in rocks, in veins, and in alluvial deposits. It occurs in a solid solution series with the native element silver (as electrum) and also naturally alloyed with copper and palladium. Less commonly, it occurs in minerals as gold compounds, often with tellurium (gold tellurides).
Gold is resistant to most acids, though it does dissolve in aqua regia, a mixture of nitric acid and hydrochloric acid, which forms a soluble tetrachloroaurate anion. Gold is insoluble in nitric acid, which dissolves silver and base metals, a property that has long been used to refine gold and to confirm the presence of gold in metallic objects, giving rise to the term acid test. Gold also dissolves in alkaline solutions of cyanide, which are used in mining and electroplating. Gold dissolves in mercury, forming amalgam alloys, but this is not a chemical reaction.
A relatively rare element, gold is a precious metal that has been used for coinage, jewelry, and other arts throughout recorded history. In the past, a gold standard was often implemented as a monetary policy, but gold coins ceased to be minted as a circulating currency in the 1930s, and the world gold standard was abandoned for a fiat currency system after 1971.
A total of 197,576 tonnes of gold exists above ground, as of 2019. This is equal to all the gold that has ever been mined. The world consumption of new gold produced is about 50% in jewelry, 40% in investments, and 10% in industry. Gold’s high malleability, ductility, resistance to corrosion, and most other chemical reactions, and conductivity of electricity have led to its continued use in corrosion-resistant electrical connectors in all types of computerized devices (its chief industrial use). Gold is also used in infrared shielding, colored-glass production, gold leafing, and tooth restoration.