what metal weighs more?

mbbiker

I just got my 1/10th oz. of platinum in the mail today. When i compared the size to my 1/10/oz of gold the platinum one is smaller, why? Does gold weigh less than platinum?

ara

1/10 oz is 1/10 oz. They are the same weight. Platinum is indeed denser (weight per unit volume) than gold.

airplanenut

Is one thicker? Denser?

coppercoins

The metal that weighs more is always the one I have to carry around, especially when it comes in the form of a ball and chain.

CarlWohlforth

Platinum is heavier for the same volume. 1/10 oz Platinum should be smaller than 1/10 oz gold which should be smaller than 1/10 oz silver.

ara

Same weight but the denser will occupy less space. 1 oz silver is bigger than 1 oz palladium is bigger than 1 oz gold is bigger than 1 oz platinum.

leothelyon

If they were the same size which one would be more or less in weight. Do you know that a cubic foot
of gold weighs 1200 lb. I always get a laugh when I see the old western movies when the bank robbers
carry off the gold or when Herman Munster lefts that trunk of gold out of the ground. A lot of gold is heavy. Have mercy on gold dealers. LOL

Leo

JamieB

Okay - What weighs more?

A Metric Ton of Platinum or a Metric Ton of Gold???




JAMIE

ps. BOnus question: Who is burried in Grants Tomb?

Petescorner

I always thought that first scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark was funny where Harrison Ford grabs that staute that looks like it's made out of gold, yet he tosses it around like it's a nerf ball.

abuell

My 1/10 oz. 2002 Uranium Eagle is even smaller yet - and while I'm waiting to get rich from its tremendous investment potential I can use it to power my submarine.

ClausUrch

I don't know
But I've been told
It's hard to run with the weight of Gold
I don't know
But I've heard it said
It's just as hard with the weight of Lead

cladking

<< <i>Okay - What weighs more?

A Metric Ton of Platinum or a Metric Ton of Gold???
>>




All else being equal a metric ton of platinum will be heavier since it has less
bouyancy in air.

dpoole

Nice, Claus. You make that up?

ClausUrch

not hardly

BAJJERFAN

I believe the lines about gold and lead are from a Grateful Dead song; the name of which escapes me at the moment tho the Album is Workingman's Dead.

MosesBlack

Density = mass per unit volume

The larger the atomic number, the more dense.

The more dense the metal, the more valuable.

If you sell coins like cattle, you would weigh them up

therefore, the more expensive the coin, the more it weighs

)))

Conder101

<< <i>The larger the atomic number, the more dense. >>


Not always true. Uranium has the highest atomic number found in nature but Osmium is the densest metal


<< <i>The more dense the metal, the more valuable. >>


Lead has a greater density than silver but it is not more valuable.

Answer to Jamie's bonus question, Who is buried in Grant's tomb? Mr and Mrs Hiriam Grant.

TomB

I'm not certain what to make of your statements, MosesBlack.

<< <i>The larger the atomic number, the more dense. >>

Is absolutely NOT true throughout the periodic table as an entity, however, it is true throughout a Group (column). Also,

<< <i>The more dense the metal, the more valuable. >>

is another one that has me scratching my head in total disagreement. Perhaps you were joking about what you wrote and it's too late in the evening for me to realize it. I just get somewhat protective of scientific ideas.

TomB

I just noticed that Conder101 and I went to the same statements to comment. In truth, I had started to write my post when Conder101's post still was not on the thread so I never saw it until I posted. I just thought that was interesting.

Libertad

The mass and weight of metals has generally been judged as the same thing for Earthlings, but the difference on the atomic scale and the macroscale varies by the manner (density) in which the atoms are fitted together in a piece of metal large enough to weigh.

The more tightly they fit, the more they weigh per volume, all other things being equal (which they rarely are).

Density = mass/volume, and the comparison of metals can be illustrated by weighing identically sized cubes of metal.


3
Silver weighs (on Earth) 10.5 g/cm

3
Gold = 19.3 g/cm
3
Platinum = 21.4 g/cm (.950 Plat. = 20.1 g/cubic cm)

3
Copper = 9.0 g/cm

Densities of metals vary according to the physical state of the metal,
as cast, roled, drawn due to varying porosity and temperature achieved.

Your mileage may vary due to the phase of the moon, and whether it was raining on the previous Tuesday.

Libertad

Oops, the little 3's should have shown as cubes for the cm measurement. They moved on me.

Gosh, it's late!