Silver is one of the most beloved metals on the whole globe, in some countries it is honored even more than gold. Skillful masters make from silver not only a different kind of decoration, but also cutlery, dishes, other useful things. The caskets made of this metal enjoy a lot of popularity.
The widest demand of silver uses the creators of the jewelry, they create earrings, rings and bracelets, complementing them with precious stones. Despite the fact that this metal is quite affordable, it was chosen and choose many royal people.
Peculiarities
Silver is a rather plastic, heavy, but very soft metal. It has good electricity and thermal conductivity, due to which it is very often used for industrial purposes.
Interesting fact: This metal does not dissolve from the effects of hydrochloric acid, but can be discharged in the chlorine gland.
Silver is not a bio-element, but scientists have proven that the metal has antibacterial properties. Some believe that If you throw a clean silver coin into the water, the latter will be cleared of microbes. But this does not mean that it is necessary to constantly use water and products, "purified" in this way. The accumulation of metal in the body is fraught with its negative consequences and serious diseases. The metal content in drinking water can be very dangerous.
It is advisable to keep silver items and jewelry away from iodine, because if they enter the reaction with him, they will darken. Such "pollution" will not clearly clean.
It is believed that silver jewelry is expensive, and therefore buyers often prefer variants from silver alloys with other metals. But it is not so. The metal in its pure form will not delight with its practical properties and softness, which is why experts are often mixed with copper, titanium or platinum.
Professionals are noticed that in the world only 20% of silver goes to the creation of jewelry. Products made of pure metal are not only rapidly darkened, but also easily scratched, while different alloys have greater hardness and less susceptible to mechanical damage. Master alloys are also called ligatures.
Thanks to the existence of various ligatures, professional jewelers can create the most sophisticated products using complex techniques.
It should not be assumed that alloys should be cheaper metal, on the contrary, they make it more wear-resistant and attractive. But, of course, do not forget about the correct care, since even silver ligators are typical with time to darken and polluted.
Types and their properties
To liquid silver today, copper is most often added. Specialists are noticed that both metal interact perfectly with each other. But this does not end in this - most often nickel, zinc, cadmium, as well as other elements that can be easily found in the periodic system (table) of Mendeleev also add to such a ligature with copper. Nickel is most often used to give an additional shine.
Sterling silver is considered the most expensive and prestigious, in which there is a mixture of copper. This alloy contains more than 92% of pure silver.
Potted silver, as well as sterling, is one of the most expensive and sought-after materials. Specialists belong to the platinum group due to high wear resistance and improved external data.
One of the popular varieties is a filigree silver, which is a metal in its pure form. It is often used for stainless notches.
Black silver It turns out by adding copper and lead. A variety of black is oxidized silver.
Gold plated silver is created by using gold, copper or brass in ligature. Such jewelry with time can darken and resemble the bronze.
If 1% nickel is present in the ligature, it means that the strength of the future product, as well as its wear resistance, will be increased, but with greater nickel content the resulting alloy will become fragile. There must be a golden middle.
Aluminum content in silver alloy more than 6% will also not lead to a high-quality mixture. The same applies to the large content of zinc, which can reduce to a minimum of all useful properties of metals.
Silver alloys with iron are not the most stable, and therefore extremely rarely created. The same applies to tin, which makes the alloy more dim.
Silver-palladium alloys are actively used in dentistry for dental prosthetics.
Application
The scope of silver use depends on its sample. Today, our country uses 8 samples of this metal. Consider them in more detail.
- 720. The lowest metal, in the ligature of which copper prevails, giving the metal yellow shade. Due to not the most aesthetically attractive properties, the metal of this sample is not used in jewelry.
- 800 and 830. Alloys data are also irrelevant for jewelry due to high copper content, but they exceed the knives handles and other items for everyday use.
- 875. Such a alloy is applied in jewelry, since pure silver is more than 87% in it, it has similar external data with white gold, which often uses fraudsters, issuing some products for others.
- 916. Today, this material is practically not used in the production of decorations. During the Soviet Union from the metal of this sample, the consumer plan was actively carried out: kettles, silver cutlery, sugar bowls, etc.
- 925. This sample is one of the most sought-after, it meets all high-quality metal standards. Metal reveals all the beauty of jewelry silver products. It is known that English coins were minted from the metal of the 925th sample, as a result of which he was called "sterling silver".
- 960. In this alloy 96% of pure silver, it is relevant to use it to create products, which will then be covered with enamel. The products from almost pure silver are very gentle, there must be special care for them, otherwise they can easily be damaged.
- 999. Clean silver used to create collectible coins and to cast silver ingots.
Other alloys are also known that do not have samples, as they contain a small amount of silver. From these alloys make inexpensive jewelry on the type of brooch and simple rings.
There are also alloys that mimic silver and not manufactured on it, there are no silver in their composition at all. As a rule, nickel, iron and manganese are present in them. Imitation alloys are almost impossible to distinguish from the real naked eye. This kind of alloy is called Melchior It is widely used in creating inexpensive jewelry and cutlery.
Recommendations for the care of silver decorations see the video below.