X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (XRF)

Working Principle: It uses X-rays to excite the elements in the sample, causing them to generate characteristic X-ray fluorescence. The instrument detects the energy and intensity of these characteristic fluorescences to determine the types and contents of elements in the sample.
Advantages: It has a fast detection speed and can obtain results within seconds to minutes; it enables non-destructive testing without damaging the gold sample; it has a wide measurement range and can detect various precious metal alloys such as gold, platinum, and palladium; it has relatively high measurement accuracy, with an error of about ±0.1% for pure gold measurement.
Disadvantages: Generally, it can only measure the element contents within a depth of about 10 micrometers below the surface of the gold. For thicker samples or those with uneven internal compositions, it may not accurately reflect the overall situation. The equipment is expensive, costing hundreds of thousands to millions of yuan, and its operation is relatively complicated, requiring professional personnel for operation and maintenance.
Application Scenarios: It is widely used in fields such as gold purity detection in the jewelry industry, component analysis in the precious metal recycling industry, and preliminary detection of gold ore samples in geological exploration.
Spectral Analyzer
Working Principle: It utilizes the characteristics of substances in absorbing, emitting or scattering light. By analyzing the spectrum, it determines the composition and structure of substances. Different elements' atoms will emit light with specific wavelengths after being excited, forming unique spectra. The spectral analyzer identifies the various elements contained in gold and their contents by analyzing these spectra.
Advantages: It has high accuracy and precision, and can quickly and accurately detect the purity of gold and the contents of impurity elements; it can detect multiple elements simultaneously, providing more comprehensive analysis results; it enables non-destructive testing without affecting the integrity and value of the gold sample.
Disadvantages: The instrument is relatively expensive and requires professional technical personnel for operation and maintenance. It has relatively high requirements for environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity, otherwise the accuracy of the measurement results may be affected. For some complex alloys or gold samples that have undergone special treatments, it may be necessary to combine other detection methods for comprehensive analysis.
Application Scenarios: It is often used in fields such as jewelry appraisal, precious metal quality inspection, and gold trading to help jewelers, investors, and testing institutions accurately evaluate the quality and value of gold.
Density Tester
Working Principle: Based on Archimedes' principle, it measures the weights of the gold sample in the air and in water respectively, calculates its density, and then compares it with the density of pure gold to judge the authenticity and purity of the gold.
Advantages: It is simple to operate and has a relatively low cost. It does not require complicated instrument equipment and professional technical personnel. For gold samples with relatively high purity, it can quickly and effectively detect their authenticity.
Disadvantages: The measurement results are greatly affected by factors such as the shape, size, surface state of the sample, as well as the temperature of the measurement environment and the purity of water. For gold samples containing impurities or alloy components, its measurement accuracy is limited and it cannot accurately determine specific impurity elements and contents. This method belongs to destructive testing and will cause certain damage to the gold sample.
Application Scenarios: In some small gold processing shops, pawnshops and other places, it is often used for preliminary and quick detection of the authenticity of gold. However, for accurate purity analysis and component identification, it is necessary to combine other detection methods for further confirmation.
Ultrasonic Detector
Working Principle: It makes use of the propagation characteristics of ultrasonic waves in metals. When ultrasonic waves encounter interfaces of different media, phenomena such as reflection, refraction and scattering will occur. By analyzing the changes in ultrasonic signals, it detects the internal structure and defects of gold, and then judges the authenticity and quality of gold.
Advantages: It has a strong penetrating ability and can detect the internal situation of gold. It has a good detection effect on gold products with internal cavities, cracks and other defects. It enables non-destructive testing without causing damage to the gold sample. It has a fast detection speed and can display the detection results immediately. The price of domestic equipment is relatively low, generally only about half of that of imported equipment.
Disadvantages: It has relatively high requirements for the technical level and experience of operators, and they need to receive professional training to accurately interpret the detection results. For gold samples with uneven surfaces or complex shapes, the detection results may be affected to some extent. Its detection accuracy is relatively lower than that of spectrometers and other methods.
Application Scenarios: It is suitable for quality inspection of gold products and internal defect detection. Especially for some large gold ornaments, handicrafts and other samples that are difficult to comprehensively detect by other methods, the ultrasonic detector has unique advantages.
Mass Spectrometer Analyzer
Working Principle: It converts the atoms or molecules in the sample into ions, and then separates and detects the ions according to their mass-to-charge ratios through the action of electric and magnetic fields, so as to determine the types of elements and the isotope ratios in the sample.
Advantages: It has extremely high sensitivity and resolution, and can detect elements and isotopes with extremely low contents. It is very helpful for distinguishing natural gold from synthetic or forged gold. It can provide detailed element isotope information, providing a powerful basis for the origin tracing, authenticity identification and so on of gold.
Disadvantages: The instrument is expensive, and the operation cost is high. It requires a professional laboratory environment and professional technical personnel for operation and maintenance. The sample preparation process is complicated, requiring pretreatment steps such as digestion and separation of the gold sample, which is time-consuming and may introduce errors.
Application Scenarios: It is mainly applied in scientific research institutions, professional testing laboratories, etc., for in-depth component analysis and identification research on high-value gold cultural relics, special-purpose gold materials, etc.