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Men and women have adorned themselves with silver jewelry since long before the age of reason! Garlands of flowers, bracelets of woven grass, shells, and stone; such were the first decorations to beautify the human body. Now days silver jewelry is most sought after jewelry. |
Sterling silver jewelry
Sterling silver is an alloy of silver containing 92.5% by weight of silver and 7.5% by weight of other metals, usually copper. The sterling silver standard has a minimum millesimal fineness of 925.
Pair of sterling silver forks
Making silver jewelry
Fine silver (99.9% pure) is generally too soft for producing silver jewelry therefore, the silver is usually alloyed with copper to give it strength, while at the same time preserving the ductility and beauty of the precious metal. Other metals can replace the copper for making silver jewelry, usually with the intent to improve various properties of the basic sterling alloy such as reducing casting porosity, eliminating firescale, and increasing resistance to tarnish. These replacement metals include germanium, zinc and platinum, as well as a variety of other additives, including silicon and boron. A number of alloys, such as Argentium sterling silver have appeared in recent years, formulated to lessen firescale or to inhibit tarnish, and this has sparked heavy competition among the various manufacturers, who are rushing to make claims of having the best formulation. However, no one alloy has emerged to replace copper as the industry standard, and alloy development is a very active area.
About silver jewelry
As the purity of the silver decreases, the problem of corrosion or tarnishing increases.
Chemically, silver is not very reactive—it does not react with oxygen or water at ordinary temperatures, so does not easily form a silver oxide. However, other metals in the alloy, usually react with oxygen in the air.
The black silver sulfide is among the most insoluble salts in aqueous solution, a property that is exploited for separating silver ions from other positive ions.
Sodium chloride or common table salt is known to corrode silver-copper alloy, typically seen in silver salt shakers where corrosion appears around the holes in the top.
Polishing Silver jewelry
Several products have been developed for the purpose of polishing silver that serve to remove sulfur from the metal without damaging or warping it. Because harsh polishing and buffing can permanently damage and devalue a piece of silver jewelry, valuable items are typically hand-polished to preserve the unique patinas of older pieces. Techniques such as wheel polishing, which are typically performed by professional jewelers or silver repair companies, are reserved for extreme tarnish or corrosion. See also Tarnish, Removal.
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