Basic Metallurgy of the Precious Metals – Part 1: Effect of Alloying on Properties

The aim of this ‘Basic Metallurgy’ series is to help jewelers better understand the science and technology underpinning the manufacture of jewelry in their industry, be it by traditional handcraft techniques or by mass manufacture on machines. This is important if they are to produce good product efficiently and avoid defects and other problems that impact quality, time taken and especially costs. In Part I, we look at how alloying affects the properties of the jewelry precious metals and the influence of working and annealing on these properties. This presentation reviews the evolution of platinum alloys over the last century against the challenges – physical and metallurgical - presented in developing improved alloys for jewelry application.