Space & Aeronautics

Without gold, man wouldn’t have visited the moon. Gold, in the form of sheets 0.15mm thick, are used in space programmes as a radiation shield. Because gold is such an effective reflector, it deflects the burning heat of the sun.

Gold is central to safe space travel, so it’s demand has obviously grown as the space industry has. For example, more than 40.8 kilograms of gold was used in the construction of the famous US Columbia space shuttle, mainly in brazing alloys, fuel cell fabrication, coated plastic films and electrical contacts.

Nanotechnology

Scientists working in nanotechnology have tended to build their nanostructures using carbon, which actually attaches itself to other substances more or less indiscriminately, whereas gold is much more reliable in that respect. JP Behrens of wealthdaily.com has described gold’s advantages:

‘Unlike carbon, gold doesn't attach to everything, but only to specific areas. It finds points to attach to, and limits where it settles. Once it chooses to settle, technicians can find the spots and attach materials to them with ease... This new precision allows nano-architects to use more meticulous actions in building newer materials faster.

From Gold.org

Medicine

In the medical field, gold is used mainly to treat rheumatoid arthritis and liver, eye and ear diseases, as well as anergia (tiredness and depression). Gold belongs to a group of drugs used to slow down rheumatoid arthritis. These drugs are known as DMARDs (disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs), and can also help ease the pain and swelling in joints.

Gold may have been used to treat rheumatoid arthritis for more than 70 years, but scientists don't quite know why it works. Some think that it stops the immune system from attacking your joints, because although your immune system normally protects your body against infection, with rheumatoid arthritis, it also damages the lining of joints.

From Gold.org

Food n Drinks

In some Asian countries, gold is used in food and drink, from fruit jelly snacks to coffee. Japan's gold leaf production was based in Kanazawa, and visitors can still find gold leaf shops and workshops selling green tea, and even candy, with gold leaf.

Europeans have included floating bits of gold leaf in bottle of liquor for centuries, at least since the late 1500s. Danziger Goldwasser, originally from Poland, which has been produced since 1598! The trend has become more popular in the US in recent years, in liquors such as Goldschläger.

Environmental

Due to its unique chemical and metallurgical properties gold is has a vital role to play in future technologies aimed at reducing pollution and energy consumption.

Examples include:

• Water Purification
• Mercury Control
• Diesel Emission Control

The recent announcement by U.S. company Nanostellar that they have developed an automotive pollution control catalyst for diesel engines that contains gold, as well as the traditional platinum and palladium ingredients, is a major step-forward in cost effective emission control.

'Green' Chemistry

Green chemistry, also called sustainable chemistry, is a chemical philosophy encouraging the design of industrial chemicals and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances. The use of gold as a catalyst has a major role to play in green chemistry

From Gold.org

Engineering

Gold is used in a myriad of engineering applications including brazing alloys, as a lubricating coating and in electrical applications like potentiometers and spark plugs

In a number of high-tech applications, engineers need to specify gold. This might, for example, be because they need a great lubricating material and gold has been used as lubricant in a number of engineering applications based on its resistance to cold welding.

In another field, gold–based brazing alloys are used in industrial brazing, offering improved resistance to oxidation, good mechanical properties of joints at elevated temperatures, and excellent corrosion resistance in challenging environments. It has also been used as a thin coating in building glazing to reflect heat radiation, keeping buildings cool in summer and warmer in winter.

From Gold.org

Electronics

Did you know the humble touchtone telephone typically contains 33 gold-plated contacts? Gold’s main role in electronics is in contacts, switches, relays and connectors. Contacts are electroplated with a very thin film of gold.

This touch of gold on a contact ensures rapid dispersion of heat, and also works to stop oxidation or tarnishing at extreme low or high temperature, providing an atomically clean metal surface with an electrical contact resistance close to zero.

Gold's other main role in electronics is in semiconductor devices, where fine gold wire or strip is used to connect parts such as transistors and integrated circuits, and in printed circuit boards to link components. Again, the need for reliable connections makes gold indispensable.

This bonding wire is one of the most specialised uses of gold; it’s highly refined to more than 99.9% purity, and the wire has a typical diameter of one hundredth of a millimetre.

From Gold.org

Dentistry

Gold has been used in dentistry for almost 3000 years. The Etruscans in the 7th century BC used gold wire to fix false teeth when their own were lost. In the 16th century an early dental textbook recommended gold leaf for filling cavities.

Gold's malleability and resistance to corrosion make it perfect for dental use, although its softness means that it needs to be alloyed to reduce wearing. The most common companion metals are platinum, silver and copper.

In recent years the price of gold has resulted in a trend towards cheaper alloys (with as little as 30% gold) and towards palladium-based alloys which contain scarcely 2% gold. Gold alloys have also suffered competition from new techniques such as ceramic dental crowns.

In addition, social security payments for gold dental work have come under tighter scrutiny; reductions in such insurance payments make gold use more price-sensitive. These factors initially contributed to a sharp fall in gold use by the dental sector, from 64 tonnes in 1980 to 48 tonnes in 1987. However, there has since been a recovery because of its non-allergic properties; demand has revived to 60 tonnes annually.

Japan is the leading dental gold fabricator, accounting for roughly 28% of the market, followed by Germany and the United States. There is significant unrecorded use, however, in Asia and Latin America where it’s not unknown for dentists to melt down gold coin to make their own alloy.

From gold.org

Decoration

Gold is used decoratively in all sorts of contexts, from costume jewellery, watchcases, pens and pencils to spectacle frames and bathroom fittings. Demand for gold from this sector is around 90 tonnes per year, and is used in various forms, such as’ rolled gold’ and ‘gold fill’.

Visually, the most spectacular use of decorative gold is gold leaf, which has been used for centuries to adorn the domes or ceilings of public buildings, mainly because its resistance to corrosion means it will outlast paint by many years.

Gold's ability to reflect heat in summer (and retain it in winter) has also led to the use of gold-coated glass in several modern buildings, especially in North America; one ounce of gold typically covers one thousand square feet of glass. This reflective glass can cut cooling and heating costs by 40%.

Gustav Klimt, the Austrian artist behind such masterpieces as ‘The Kiss’, is famous for his use of gold leaf. In fact, his father was even a gold engraver, although not a particularly successful one. But does the gold in Klimt’s paintings make the work more glamorous? Well, his 1907 ‘Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer’ was recently bought for a record-breaking £73 million, so some people think

so!

From Gold.org

Catalysts

Catalysts are substances or materials which accelerate the rate of a chemical reaction without being consumed by the reaction themselves. They’re an essential component of many different industrial processes used to produce chemicals, foodstuffs and other materials. Perhaps one of the first intentional uses of catalysis was in the fermentation of sugar to make alcohol.

Another common example is the use of catalytic converters on cars, to control exhaust emissions.Until recently, most researchers had overlooked gold as a possible industrial catalyst. However, there is now a growing anticipation about gold’s potential for catalysing industrial reactions, largely thanks to the recent work of Graham Hutchings at the University of Wales, and Masatake Haruta from AIST in Japan.

One of the most remarkable things about catalysis by gold is the low temperature at which it becomes functional. Gold catalysts operate best between 200-350K°, whereas platinum needs temperatures between 400-800K° to work properly. Gold also offers the potential to catalyse new reactions, and can in some cases be surprisingly cost-effective.

From Gold.org

Beauty

Gold nanoparticles are finding use in a wide range of cosmetic and beauty applications. Korean nanotechnology company Nano-Vision Tech has recently been assigned with an International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient (INCI) designation for its Nano gold material.

The assignment was made by the industry body The Cosmetic, Toiletry and fragrance Association (CTFA). Nano-Vision Tech are supplying the Nano gold for use in soap, hair tonic and face masks.

For more information see http://www.nanovistech.com/

Other companies with 'nanogold' based cosmetic products include NanoPlasma Centre's Nanoseal range of face creams, see nanoplasmacenter.com and SongSing Nano Technology's skin creams http://www.ssnano.net/index.htm

From Gold.org