Colored gold

Pure gold is slightly reddish yellow in

color,[1] but colored gold in various other
colors can be produced.

Ternary plot of different colors of Ag–Au–Cu alloys

Colored golds can be classified in three
groups:[2]

Alloys with silver and copper in various

proportions, producing white, yellow,
green and red golds. These are typically
malleable alloys.
Intermetallic compounds, producing
blue and purple golds, as well as other
colors. These are typically brittle, but
can be used as gems and inlays.
Surface treatments, such as oxide
layers.
Pure 100% (in practice, 99.9% or better)
gold is 24 karat by definition, so all colored
golds are less pure than this, commonly
18K (75%), 14K (58.5%), 10K (41.6%), or 9K
(37.5%).[3]

Alloys

White gold …

Rhodium-plated white gold wedding ring

White gold is an alloy of gold and at least
one white metal (usually nickel, silver, or
palladium).[4] Like yellow gold, the purity of
white gold is given in karats.

White gold's properties vary depending on

the metals used and their proportions. As
a result, white gold alloys can be used for
many different purposes; while a nickel
alloy is hard and strong, and, therefore,
good for rings and pins, gold–palladium
alloys are soft, pliable, and good for white
gold gemstone settings, sometimes with
other metals, like copper, silver, and
platinum, added for weight and durability
(although this often requires specialized
goldsmiths). The term white gold is used
very loosely in the industry to describe
karat gold alloys with a whitish hue. It is a
common misconception that the color of
the rhodium plating, which is seen on
many commercial pieces, is actually the
color of white gold. The term "white"
covers a large spectrum of colors that
borders or overlaps pale yellow, tinted
brown, and even very pale rose. The
jewelry industry often conceals these off-
white colors by rhodium plating.

A common white gold formulation

consists of 90 wt.% gold and 10 wt.%
nickel.[3] Copper can be added to increase
malleability.[2]

The strength of gold–nickel–copper alloys

is caused by formation of two phases, a
gold-rich Au–Cu, and a nickel-rich Ni–Cu,
and the resulting hardening of the
material.[2]

The alloys used in jewelry industry are

gold–palladium–silver and gold–nickel–
copper–zinc. Palladium and nickel act as
primary bleaching agents for gold; zinc
acts as a secondary bleaching agent to
attenuate the color of copper.
The nickel used in some white gold alloys
can cause an allergic reaction when worn
over long periods (also notably on some
wristwatch casings).[5] This reaction,
typically a minor skin rash from nickel
dermatitis, occurs in about one out of
eight people; because of this, many
countries do not use nickel in their white
gold formulations. Gold is rarely pure gold,
even before another metal is added to
make a white gold alloy, and often
contains a mercury alloy from its
production, which can cause an allergic
reaction.[6]
Yellow gold …

Examples of the common alloys for 18K

yellow gold include:

18K yellow gold: 75% gold, 12.5%

copper, 12.5% silver
18K yellow (darker) gold: 75% gold, 15%
copper, 10% silver

Rose, red, and pink gold …

Rose gold diamond engagement ring

Rose gold is a gold–copper alloy[7] widely
used for specialized jewelry. Rose gold,
also known as pink gold and red gold, was
popular in Russia at the beginning of the
nineteenth century, and was also known as
Russian gold, although this term is now
obsolete. Rose gold jewelry is becoming
more popular in the 21st century, and is
commonly used for wedding rings,
bracelets, and other jewelry.

Although the names are often used

interchangeably, the difference between
red, rose, and pink gold is the copper
content: the higher the copper content, the
stronger the red coloration. Pink gold uses
the least copper, followed by rose gold,
with red gold having the highest copper
content. Examples of the common alloys
for 18K rose gold, 18K red gold, 18K pink
gold, and 12K red gold include:[3]

18K red gold: 75% gold, 25% copper

18K rose gold: 75% gold, 22.25% copper,
2.75% silver
18K pink gold: 75% gold, 20% copper, 5%
silver
12K red gold: 50% gold and 50% copper

Up to 15% zinc can be added to copper-

rich alloys to change their color to reddish
yellow or dark yellow.[2] 14K red gold, often
found in the Middle East, contains 41.67%
copper.

The highest karat version of rose gold,

also known as crown gold, is 22 karat.

During ancient times, due to impurities in

the smelting process, gold frequently
turned a reddish color. This is why many
Greco-Roman texts, and even many texts
from the Middle Ages, describe gold as
"red".

Spangold …

Some gold copper–aluminium alloys form

a fine surface texture at heat treatment,
yielding an interesting spangling effect. At
cooling, they undergo a quasi-martensitic
transformation from body-centered cubic
to body-centered tetragonal phase; the
transformation does not depend on the
cooling rate. A polished object is heated in
hot oil to 150–200 °C for 10 minutes then
cooled below 20 °C, forming a sparkly
surface covered with tiny facets.

The alloy of 76% gold, 19% copper, and 5%

aluminium yields a yellow color; the alloy
of 76% gold, 18% copper and 6%
aluminium is pink.[2]

Green gold …
Green gold was known to the Lydians as
long ago as 860 BC under the name
electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of
silver and gold.[3] It actually appears as
greenish-yellow rather than green. Fired
enamels adhere better to these alloys than
to pure gold.

Cadmium can also be added to gold alloys

to create a green color, but there are health
concerns regarding its use, as cadmium is
highly toxic.[8] The alloy of 75% gold, 15%
silver, 6% copper, and 4% cadmium yields a
dark-green alloy.

Grey gold …
Grey gold alloys are usually made from
gold and palladium. A cheaper alternative
which does not use palladium is made by
adding silver, manganese, and copper to
the gold in specific ratios.[9]

Intermetallic
All the AuX2 intermetallics have the fluorite
(CaF2) crystal structure, and, therefore, are
brittle.[2] Deviation from the stoichiometry
results in loss of color. Slightly
nonstoichiometric compositions are used,
however, to achieve a fine-grained two- or
three-phase microstructure with reduced
brittleness. Another way of reducing
brittleness is to add a small amount of
palladium, copper, or silver.[10]

The intermetallic compounds tend to have

poor corrosion resistance. The less noble
elements are leached to the environment,
and a gold-rich surface layer is formed.
Direct contact of blue and purple gold
elements with skin should be avoided as
exposure to sweat may result in metal
leaching and discoloration of the metal
surface.[10]

Purple gold …
Gold–aluminium phase diagram

Purple gold (also called amethyst gold and

violet gold) is an alloy of gold and
aluminium rich in gold–aluminium
intermetallic (AuAl2). Gold content in AuAl2
is around 79% and can therefore be
referred to as 18 karat gold. Purple gold is
more brittle than other gold alloys (a
serious fault when it forms in
electronics[11]), as it is an intermetallic
compound instead of a malleable alloy,
and a sharp blow may cause it to
shatter.[12] It is therefore usually machined
and faceted to be used as a "gem" in
conventional jewelry rather than by itself.
At a lower content of gold, the material is
composed of the intermetallic and an
aluminium-rich solid solution phase. At a
higher content of gold, the gold-richer
intermetallic AuAl forms; the purple color
is preserved to about 15% of aluminium.
At 88% of gold the material is composed
of AuAl and changes color. The actual
composition of AuAl2 is closer to Al11Au6
as the sublattice is incompletely
occupied.[2]

Blue gold …

Blue gold is an alloy of gold and either

gallium or indium.[12] Gold–indium
contains 46% gold (about 11 karat) and
54% indium,[3] forming an intermetallic
compound AuIn2. While several sources
remark this intermetallic to have "a clear
blue color",[2] in fact the effect is slight:
AuIn2 has CIE LAB color coordinates of 79,
−3.7, −4.2[10] which appears roughly as a
greyish color. With gallium, gold forms an
intermetallic AuGa2 (58.5% Au, 14ct) which
has slighter bluish hue. The melting point
of AuIn2 is 541 °C, for AuGa2 it is 492 °C.
AuIn2 is less brittle than AuGa2, which
itself is less brittle than AuAl2.[10]

A surface plating of blue gold on karat

gold or sterling silver can be achieved by a
gold plating of the surface, followed by
indium plating, with layer thickness
matching the 1:2 atomic ratio. A heat
treatment then causes interdiffusion of the
metals and formation of the required
intermetallic compound.

Surface treatments
Black gold …

Black gold is a type of gold used in

jewelry.[13][14] Black-colored gold can be
produced by various methods:

Patination by applying sulfur- and

oxygen-containing compounds.
Plasma-assisted chemical vapor
deposition process involving amorphous
carbon
Controlled oxidation of gold containing
chromium or cobalt (e.g. 75% gold, 25%
cobalt[3]).

A range of colors from brown to black can

be achieved on copper-rich alloys by
treatment with potassium sulfide.[2]

Cobalt-containing alloys, e.g. 75% gold

with 25% cobalt, form a black oxide layer
with heat treatment at 700–950 °C.
Copper, iron and titanium can be also used
for such effect. Gold–cobalt–chromium
alloy (75% gold, 15% cobalt, 10%
chromium) yields a surface oxide that is
olive-tinted because of the chromium(III)
oxide content, is about five times thinner
than Au–Co and has significantly better
wear resistance. The gold–cobalt alloy
consists of gold-rich (about 94% Au) and
cobalt-rich (about 90% Co) phases; the
cobalt-rich phase grains are capable of
oxide-layer formation on their surface.[2]

More recently, black gold can be formed by

creating nanostructures on the surface. A
femtosecond laser pulse deforms the
surface of the metal, creating an
immensely increased surface area which
absorbs virtually all the light that falls on it,
thus rendering it deep black,[15] but this
method is used in high technology
applications rather than for appearance in
jewelry. The blackness is due to the
excitation of localized surface plasmons
which creates strong absorption in a broad
range in plasmon resonance. The
broadness of the plasmon resonance, and
absorption wavelength range, depends on
the interaction between different gold
nanoparticles.[16]

Blue gold …

Oxide layers can also be used to obtain

blue gold from an alloy of 75% gold, 24.4%
iron, and 0.6% nickel; the layer forms on
heat treatment in air between 450–
600 °C.[2]

A rich sapphire blue colored gold of 20–

23K can also be obtained by alloying with
ruthenium, rhodium and three other
elements and heat-treating at 1800 °C, to
form the 3–6 micrometers thick colored
surface oxide layer.[2]

See also
Corinthian bronze
Crown gold
Electrum
Hepatizon
List of alloys
Mokume-gane, a mixed-metal laminate
Orichalcum
Panchaloha, alloys used for making
Hindu temple icons
 Shakudō, copper with 4–10% gold
Tumbaga

References
1. Encyclopædia of Chemistry,
theoretical, Practical, and Analytical:
As Applied to the Arts and
Manufactures . J. B. Lippincott &
Company. 1880. pp. 70–.
2. Cretu, C.; Van Der Lingen, E. (1999).
"Coloured gold alloys" . Gold Bulletin.
32 (4): 115.
doi:10.1007/BF03214796 .
3. Emsley, John (2003) Nature's building
blocks: an A–Z guide to the elements .
 Oxford University Press.
ISBN 0198503407. p. 168
4. "White gold" . Assay Office,
Birmingham, UK. Retrieved 7 January
2019.
5. White Gold Archived 2008-11-22 at
the Wayback Machine – Site provided
by the World Gold Council
. Pigatto, P. D.; Guzzi, G. (2017). "Allergy
to Gold: The Two Faces of Mercury" .
Annals of Dermatology. 29 (1): 105–
106. doi:10.5021/ad.2017.29.1.105 .
PMC 5318506 . PMID 28223758 .
7. Plumlee, Scott David (2014).
Handcrafting Chain and Bead Jewelry:
 Techniques for Creating Dimensional
Necklaces and Bracelets .
Potter/TenSpeed/Harmony.
ISBN 9780770434694.
. Mead, M. N. (2010). "Cadmium
confusion: Do consumers need
protection?" . Environmental Health
Perspectives. 118 (12): a528–34.
doi:10.1289/ehp.118-a528 .
PMC 3002210 . PMID 21123140 .
9. Ribault, Laurent and LeMarchand,
Annie (June 10, 2003). "For
manufacturing jewels by the
disposable wax casting technique;
 does not cause allergies" U.S. Patent
6,576,187.html
10. Klotz, U. E. (2010). "Metallurgy and
processing of coloured gold
intermetallics — Part I: Properties and
surface processing" (PDF). Gold
Bulletin. 43: 4–10.
doi:10.1007/BF03214961 . Archived
from the original (PDF) on July 26,
2011.
11. "Purple plague" Archived 2014-05-04
at the Wayback Machine. International
Electrotechnical Commission Glossary
12. "Gold In Purple Color, Blue Color And
Even Black Gold" . kaijewels.com.
13. "Jewellery Technology" . World Gold
Council. Archived from the original on
March 3, 2006.
14. Rapson, W. S. (1978). Gold Usage.
Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-12-
581250-4.
15. "Ultra-Intense Laser Blast Creates True
'Black Metal' " . Retrieved 2007-11-21.
1 . ElKabbash, Mohamed; et al. (2017).
"Tunable Black Gold: Controlling the
Near-Field Coupling of Immobilized Au
Nanoparticles Embedded in
Mesoporous Silica Capsules".
Advanced Optical Materials. 5 (21):
 1700617.
doi:10.1002/adom.201700617 .

External links
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