Crispin
Silver Member
- Jun 26, 2012
- 3,584
- 2,856
- Detector(s) used
- Coinmaster Pro, Sand Shark
- Primary Interest:
- Other
I would like to thank everbody for their input. I have learned a lot in the last week. When I first found my ring I thought I had junk, next I thought it was silver, and then I thought it was platinum. After more input and research I then thought I had silver again, and then junk again (no thanks to the idiots at Tiffany's in Mall of Millenia Orlando.) I pulled out my old chemistry textbooks, ran an experiment, and when all else failed...went to a Pawn Shop.
The stamp 950 almost exclusively means platinum. It can mean other things but this is very uncommon. So why didn't I believe my ring was platinum? Answer: platinum does not tarnish(oxidize) and my ring was oxidized. Most searches on the internet will tell you that gold and platinum do not oxidize. This is only partially true. Platnium does not oxidize at normal air or water temperatures. Thus, I could not have platinum, right? Wrong... PV = nRT or pressure x volume = moles x constant x temperature. When applying this to chemical reactions one can assume that as pressure increases then temperature decreases. So, where in the world can one find high enough pressures to get platinum to oxidize? Answer: at the bottom of the ocean.
So, platinum can be oxidized (tarnished) and exist in the tarnished state. Here is a link to Platinum(II)Oxide or PtO2:
Platinum Oxide | Platinum Oxide
One can convert platinum oxide back to platinum by cleaning and soaking it in household ammonium, which I did. After doing all this research I took my ring a pawn shop where the attendant was thoroughly confused and convinced it was not platinum. She called the manager, who then called the owner, who then called the person they send to melt the metal. After running some basic tests in the shop they offered me half-market value for platinum at a ring weight of 9.6grams....I turned them down.
End result: my first ring find was platinum, yeah!!!
View attachment 658366 View attachment 658365
The stamp 950 almost exclusively means platinum. It can mean other things but this is very uncommon. So why didn't I believe my ring was platinum? Answer: platinum does not tarnish(oxidize) and my ring was oxidized. Most searches on the internet will tell you that gold and platinum do not oxidize. This is only partially true. Platnium does not oxidize at normal air or water temperatures. Thus, I could not have platinum, right? Wrong... PV = nRT or pressure x volume = moles x constant x temperature. When applying this to chemical reactions one can assume that as pressure increases then temperature decreases. So, where in the world can one find high enough pressures to get platinum to oxidize? Answer: at the bottom of the ocean.
So, platinum can be oxidized (tarnished) and exist in the tarnished state. Here is a link to Platinum(II)Oxide or PtO2:
Platinum Oxide | Platinum Oxide
One can convert platinum oxide back to platinum by cleaning and soaking it in household ammonium, which I did. After doing all this research I took my ring a pawn shop where the attendant was thoroughly confused and convinced it was not platinum. She called the manager, who then called the owner, who then called the person they send to melt the metal. After running some basic tests in the shop they offered me half-market value for platinum at a ring weight of 9.6grams....I turned them down.
End result: my first ring find was platinum, yeah!!!
View attachment 658366 View attachment 658365
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, Nice first find, that is the way to research also...
But you would think someone out there would definitely be able to positively I.D. the ring. But if it tested platinum, well......must be platinum then. Interesting mystery for sure.
