> chemistry > metal-refining > making-purple-gold-al2au-alloy-nilered

Making purple gold

NileRed - 2023-12-22

💻Thanks to Opera for sponsoring this video! Get a browser that’s literally better at everything, download Opera today: https://opr.as/12-Opera-Browser-NileRed

A few years ago I stumbled onto something called purple gold and I really wanted to buy a pure purple gold ring. However, I was devastated when I found out that it didn't exist...so I decided to try and make one myself.

Turning old jewelry into pure gold bars: https://youtu.be/37Kn-kIsVu8

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Nile talks about lab safety: https://youtu.be/ftACSEJ6DZA

Music in credits (Walker by SORRYSINES): https://soundcloud.com/sorrysines/walker

@NileRed - 2023-12-22

Your browser is holding you back. Level up with Opera here: https://opr.as/12-Opera-Browser-NileRed

@sage211 - 2023-12-22

Ok

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts 💨

@lorelaimorace-kk1xz - 2023-12-22

SUUUUPE DUDE

@james3126 - 2023-12-22

first jk, i love u nile

@CrypticSkies0 - 2023-12-22

Hello

@joellow3541 - 2024-02-03

One month on, Singaporean here and I just happened to stopped by Lee Hwa for some jewllery shopping. Asked the staff about purple gold and would you know it, the staff informed that this video was shared all over the company internally. Staff shared that Lee Hwa actually experienced a spike in international sales right after this video dropped, so they have Nile to thank for!

@Not_interestEd- - 2024-02-05

Betting on new jewelry companies to start rising up and making more polished purple gold than what's currently available. The competition begins...

@TravelosophyTV - 2024-02-06

You are correct. Lee Hwa's website have gone from an average of 20k viewers a month to a bit above 290k.

Thanks to Nile they most likely gonna have their best year.

@wynoglia - 2024-02-06

THATS WILD
WHERE'S HIS CHEQUE???

@ximar0ckstrx - 2024-02-06

This is so amazing ❤❤❤

@mspooner - 2024-02-08

Yeah, another future sale here

@joshuahancock2079 - 2023-12-24

Fun fact: in the semi-conductor industry, this alloy is known as “purple plague” because it’s extremely detrimental to parts. Basically, if gold and aluminum contacts touch at high temp, some purple alloy naturally forms. This alloy is both brittle and a poor conductor, leading to electrical or mechanical failure. It was a big issue for a while, and Al and Au are some of the most common contact materials in chips. So yeah, fun facts for ya.

Edit: Wow, this blew up, haha. Glad to start some cool conversations and learning!

@rusty9959 - 2023-12-25

Very interesting thanks for sharing

@thrahxvaug6430 - 2023-12-25

one man's plague alloy is another man's shiny finger trinket

@gloriouslumi - 2023-12-25

Grats, I give you 100 likes, on this, Christmas Eve.

@Beanzops - 2023-12-25

My gold is better than NileRed’s gold

@TimmyT1234 - 2023-12-25

Glad someone else called it out. It's super obscure unless you're in the right industry, and then you hate it lol

@michaelimbesi2314 - 2023-12-23

I love how the chemistry in this video isn’t complicated, it’s just Nile learning that casting metal is complex.

@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721 - 2023-12-23

I'm totally down for this arc for Nile. Sometimes he doesn't need insane chemical recipes to make something exciting.

@iankrasnow5383 - 2023-12-23

Turns out that materials science is pretty different from chemistry and just as complicated. There's a lot more to making a high performance alloy than just the right mix of elemental metals.

@SURok695 - 2023-12-23

​@@iankrasnow5383 but material science is partly chemistry. Especially when this is about alloys.

@tlawal7 - 2023-12-23

This video features a lot of manufacturing and material science, two things I did in mechanical engineering. I did very little chemistry in it

@theperfectionist1607 - 2023-12-23

@@SURok695 Mainly engineering though

@t0ast3d41 - 2024-09-29

You should attempt to make blue gold, it's a rare alloy of gold made possible using indium or galium in combination with the gold. The result is a really nice blue or cyan color.

@yourdaily_art - 2024-10-04

YA it's so pretty aswell

@allenamen5403 - 2024-10-05

Agreed. Would like to see him try it

@misusly - 2024-10-07

Please do this

@xdeimosz - 2024-10-10

Please do this! Would be an awesome sequel to this video

@greenbeans9748 - 2024-10-16

I'd love to see this! I hope it won't be as hard as the purple gold.

@NathanielBandy - 2023-12-28

The beaker drop had me in shambles until I realized it was just a bamboozle

@jameseden9380 - 2023-12-28

Oh no....

@Wolfixal - 2023-12-28

same lmfaoo

@theredvelvetyfox8814 - 2023-12-28

My heart sank when I saw that then I swore at Nile

@devinm.608 - 2023-12-28

I about had a heart attack lmao

@samuraichicken9248 - 2023-12-28

I literally yelled out loud in anger, frustration, and sadness. But then I realized that it had to be a prank, and I am very glad that it was.

@Leena79 - 2024-01-02

I'm a jewellery maker, and I just watched this whole video utterly fascinated. The chemistry, the complexity of casting metal, and the artistry, all combined into an absolute thriller. When I studied jewellery making, I never got to cast gold for budget reasons, and I only know in theory how gold can be dissolved in aqua regia, and I'm just mindblown right now.

@shortcomedy20235 - 2024-01-04

553 Likes And No Replies Let Me Fix That

@mixikitti - 2024-01-05

@LOLOLOL69220 i already know you're a bot

@Calophon - 2024-01-05

Having studied jewelry making I kept wondering if he knew what a centrifugal caster is. That might have eliminated the last of the bubbles and cast the purple gold into the final form all in one.

@zperdek - 2024-01-05

​@@CalophonMechanoChemistry?

@highdefinition450 - 2024-01-05

this must be so satisfying for someone in the know lmao

@TamarinGuy - 2023-12-22

I showed this video to my godfather who owns a large jewelry company and he told me he had tried to make this about 5 years ago and this was some of the finest work he had ever seen

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts.

@wudut_ - 2023-12-22

you have autism@@p-__

@VeeVeeLa - 2023-12-22

That's interesting to hear! Do you think he would try again in the future?

@AstralPulse8 - 2023-12-22

@@p-__congrats? 🤨

@jj-iu6uc - 2023-12-22

Will he make it

@Zrs3820 - 2024-10-30

Nile really made himself a name in the history books. Respect. Obviously purple gold has existed before but Nile here just innovated on the fact on how to make this sort of gold economically feasible. Plus the knowledge itself of casting all these metals is always appreciated to be known by those like me who watched this video since the field of metallurgy is incredibly complex and can't be comprehened by those who don't know that much about this field. Awesome video and what an awesome achievement Nile. You should be proud.

@BaroqueBach. - 2023-12-22

"Im not usually into jewellery"

Nile casually making himself grillz a few months ago

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts 💨

@kphaxx - 2023-12-22

He's right tho. He's unusually into jewelry.

@helloolleh_dis - 2023-12-22

@@kphaxx Exactly

@jacobramirez4894 - 2023-12-22

He’s right tho

@Asstolfo96 - 2023-12-22

In the grillz video, he mentioned that grillz was really the only jewellery he liked.

@lach888c2 - 2023-12-30

This has to be one of the most well deserved patents. Not only figuring out how to make purple gold but refining the process so it can be strong and once it’s set into a shape then annealed into the crystal structure that gives it the purple colour. It must be near impossible to rediscover this without a deep, deep understanding of metallurgy.

@Doping1234 - 2023-12-31

Plus: Stuff disclosed actually works as described. Not all heroes wear capes, some sell jewelry.

@bunnyben5607 - 2024-01-01

He probably payed a lot of money for the patent

@joshuahancock2079 - 2024-01-01

Metallurgy is freaking magic. I have an insane amount of respect for the researchers, engineers, and artisans that have put in the time and effort to understanding it. Every time I look at a phase diagram, I am reminded that there are some real geniuses out there.

@CrimsonA1 - 2024-01-01

Imagine making this stuff 1000 or so years ago. You'd be some kind of wizard/witch!

@Doping1234 - 2024-01-01

@@CrimsonA1 given the technology back then and the challenges involved I'd agree with the town folks ;)

@xenialafleur - 2023-12-23

The part with the Aqua Regia is exactly how George de Hevesy hid 2 Nobel Prize medals during WWII. To the soldiers who looked around his lab for valuable things, it just looked like a beaker of orange chemicals. After the war, he precipitated the gold back out and the Nobel Committee recast the medals from that gold.

@Paula_Limberg - 2023-12-23

Dude, that is amazing! Thanks for sharing!

@tsraikage - 2023-12-23

didn't know this story. so cool

@Alondro77 - 2023-12-23

I knew that story from wayyyyy back in chemistry lab when we were playing with strong mineral acids.

@_DREBBEL_ - 2023-12-23

Science wins again! Love it.

@Quroe_ - 2023-12-23

This is an amazing story. I think this would have been cool to hear in the video.

@sarahtedesco8927 - 2024-10-02

The unevenness of the color is likely due to microsegregation of the alloy as it cooled in the mold. The "holes" are likely shrinkage porosity from cooling. You can pretty much weld them together by heating the stock and forging them (rolling) it together while hot.

@a.maus.2615 - 2023-12-25

Whats crazy is you've advanced a field. no one makes cast purple gold jewelry because of the complications. You are now one of the best in the world at that specific task and made it look like a college students term project.

@Devblivion - 2023-12-25

To be fair bro has a 6 figure laboratory

@naterinosan6920 - 2023-12-25

@@Devblivion 🤣 You're not wrong

@tiki_trash - 2023-12-25

Purple gold is ugly but...

@cybyrd9615 - 2023-12-25

He's a chemist doing material science lol

@robertnett9793 - 2023-12-25

@@Devblivion That certainly helps in figuring out the correct process. But the actual gear you really need doesn't seem that expensive.

I mean, you need the beaker and the acids to pulverize your gold (and that seems to be optional, you can use other methodes) - you need some way to melt the gold, the argon-setup and a way to get your molds.

I think some mid 4 figures of gear and material (excluding the gold) to start you off.

@ceebeetan - 2023-12-26

I'm from Singapore and i grew up seeing Lee Hwa's purple gold ads and shop displays. I didnt know the purple gold was legitimate gold! My husband also thought there was a coating of purple substance, not actual gold. This is so interesting. Good job Nile on replicating it so perfectly.

@Notfiveo0 - 2023-12-26

I would have just used 24k casting grain like most sane jewelers would do.

@ning385 - 2023-12-26

Purple Gold was found and patented by a Professor in Singapore. Then Lee Hwa Jewellery brought the formula rights, and then make it Gold Heart’s exclusive. I used to work with Lee Hwa Jewellery, therefore, it’s part of the training.

@buggerlugz6753 - 2023-12-26

spraying the gold purple and lacquering it would be a damn sight easier.

@mikstockden6525 - 2023-12-26

I was in Singapore back in 07 for some courses through the company I was working for. I remembered walking past some jewellry stores and they had purple gold jewellry for sale. As I had previously worked in a gold refinerary doing the Aqua Regia making 99.999% or Five Nines (sometimes higher) I was curious as to the process of making the purple gold. The sales team couldn't tell me the exact process but there had been a patent taken out on it.

@thierryf67 - 2023-12-26

well it's not actual gold, it an ally of about 80% gold and aluminium. Like the other gold ally with silver, or copper, that the jewelers sell as "gold".

@bappoappo2372 - 2023-12-23

i am a jeweler and goldsmith apprentice and seeing you drop the beaker "full of gold" game me heart palpitations and i almost started crying in Italian

@jameskazd9951 - 2023-12-23

yeah i seen that and was like "oh my god WHAT?"

@pohkuangda6662 - 2023-12-23

MAMAMIA THE GOLD

@kinl0r - 2023-12-23

@@pohkuangda6662I literally cackled when I read this

@markramrattan7206 - 2023-12-23

😂😂😂

@SmolPotatowo - 2023-12-23

Before he dropped the beaker I was thinking "Wow it would really suck if you dropped that..."
Casual 8k CAD beaker

@scorpiopig - 2024-09-30

Hi Nilered & subs, I use to work for a manufacturing jeweler and they use to keep all findings of precious metals, eg. Sweeping up after the day to collect all the precious metal dust made by eg. sawing or polishing down the jewelery, and that would be send to the metal refinery where they melt it down and extract the precious metal in it to buy it from you. Nothing goes to waste😊

@ロロノアゾロ-h4m - 2023-12-23

It's absolutely fascinating that you ALWAYS include processes that went wrong or produced unexpected results. It makes me appreciate the hard work, time, and patience that you put into all of your projects even more.

@breadloafbrad - 2023-12-23

I appreciate that he shows this because as anyone who’s taken a chem course can attest to, experiments never go how they’re planned so it’s nice to see that that’s not just a problem at the student level

@santiagoo.8958 - 2023-12-23

Honestly that's by far the best part of his videos, the problem solving. If it was just a step by step on how to do chemistry it would be like reading a recipe, it isn't exciting. But finding roadblocks and manouvering around them with relatively limited equipment is a testament to ingenuity, creativity, and the indomitable will of human beings.

@Sugarman96 - 2023-12-23

The failures are sometimes the funniest parts. It was fun seeing him make the cherry soda from the paint thinner, but it would not have been the same experience without including the mistake where he accidentally tear gassed himself.

@p-__ - 2023-12-23

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts 💨

@zaappaa - 2023-12-24

@@p-__me too💭😫

@krisholden5365 - 2024-08-08

Aluminum die caster here. We have graphite tubes with hundreds of little holes in them. Think like a fish tank bubbler rock. The sole purpose is to degass our molten aluminum with argon! It was fun to watch you figure this out on your own. It took the casting industry about 50 years to do it!!!

Edit: we also put negative draft on all of our molds. I think you now know why!!! We have very expensive mold design and testing software that I would be happy to use to help you if you want to make another mold. Just let me know!

@OGakadatguy - 2024-08-19

I hope he sees this and tries this once more.

@CoincidenceTheorist - 2024-08-20

Agreed

@CoincidenceTheorist - 2024-08-20

Uninterested in getting some of those tubes.

I wonder if the tubes are like fritted glass which makes mucho bubbles

@coreytaylor5386 - 2024-08-23

its pretty cool to see two different sources, both professional and personal "hobby" project arrive at the same solution for a problem like this.

@n0x3n - 2024-08-24

I used to work for a company that produces industrial compressors and vacuums like the ones installed in hospitals for their pneumatic equipment (think the tube a dentists uses to pull excess water and saliva from your mouth while they do cleanings an such.) we always installed "brass sponge" mufflers on our units for all of the exhaust and drain pipes. The brass sponge fittings also have tons of holes but I guess wouldn't work under such high heats. However I have seen them used alternatively as percolators for fume filters an such

@teddy_bear6122 - 2024-08-17

Love way you introduce the metals. Like, “here is my 5000 dollar bar of 24k gold, i considered smashing it, here’s me throwing it on the ground. Im going to disolve it now..” and then “i bought this aluminum off ebay, here is me showcasing it on the table, im not going to do anything to it it’s staying like this.”

@franklynfischer5783 - 2024-08-24

I enjoyed that too. Also, good to see I'm not the only one it pushed this video to this week.

@emsouemsou - 2024-08-31

Right before he redissolved it again for the first time I thought "Wow he spent 5 grand and now it all looks like a bunch of grey junk". For some reason the thought didn't occur to me that you could just put it back in the aqua regia.

@tiegz9770 - 2024-10-17

You are simultaneously living my childhood potion making AND pirate treasure hunting dreams

@TheTombot - 2023-12-26

This is legitimately some stuff that may have never been recorded on camera let alone documented in this way. Fantastic work, NileRed. You should be very proud of this one.

@kengamingd2438 - 2023-12-26

May even help future companies that want to try and make this stuff. This video was very impressive.

@StupidFilms803 - 2023-12-27

I never knew elixir was real irl

@Sydd787 - 2023-12-27

He's the local chem wizard of YT. This is what youtube was made for. 💙

@webaazul2500 - 2023-12-27

From now on jeweleries from all over the world trying to make purple gold will look at this video the same way we look at those extremely detailed answers from 2007 forums for ridiculously niche questions

@ryandougherty3377 - 2023-12-22

7:50 As soon as the gold was completely dissolved, I thought to myself, man, the worst thing that could happen is if he spilled this beaker of $5,700 orange soda. I basically yelled out loud when I saw it slip.

@hugoremmen - 2023-12-22

dude, this exactly hahahaha i flipped out

@MackenzieNerdyEMT - 2023-12-22

I pictured dropping or spilling it as well! It definitely put me on edge haha.

@OmniversalInsect - 2023-12-22

He did the same thing with bromine lol

@josevera5094 - 2023-12-22

I was expecting the prank. Still gave me a heart attack

@ayuvell4790 - 2023-12-22

That was such an easy joke, considering he already did it once)

@PsRohrbaugh - 2023-12-27

Remember that aluminum immediately passivates into aluminum oxide, so all bulk "aluminum" contains surface layer of aluminum oxide. You need to use chemistry magic to add PURE aluminum to the liquid gold with no surface layer. Perhaps suspended in a liquid. Add the liquid to the crucible with bubbling argon and slowly warm up the crucible evaporating the suspended liquid. Now you have pure aluminum you can add gold to.

You're also sanding / polishing with aluminum oxide. This is why it remained silver.

Do this: mix pure aluminum with no aluminum oxide, pure Gold. Bubble some argon. Pour into a mold, and put DIRECTLY into a furnace and do not let it cool below 600C. Let it sit at 600C for 24 hours, and cool down to room temperature over the following 24 hours. Then polish with stainless steel, stone, or some non aluminum compound.

I am going to do my own work with my goldsmith friend but you have much more resources.

Finally, you say you don't knowing where the gold went... But you were sanding for 10 hours (!) multiple times (!) and you ONLY lost 5 grams?

@Wireball - 2023-12-27

Burn the sandpaper! Burn it, I say! (I suspect it's in the crevices)

@SvdW - 2023-12-27

I had exactly the same thought ​@Wireball
The sandpaper had increased his value with those gold between de crevices 😂

@blindfsh6093 - 2023-12-27

​@@Wireballthis was my guess too. Fun fact: gold purifying plants burn disposable bodysuits and air filters for extra gold recovery

@wronger0123 - 2023-12-27

It can hide in places you might not expect

@Lanka0Kera - 2023-12-27

@@Wireball Even just completely washing it might have recovered some of those lost 5 g. :p
Even if the paper doesn't require it, using water while sanding metals makes it easier to recover them because they'll be a slurry instead of dust that can get anywhere by just blowing in the general direction...

@Shannon-f8w - 2024-10-03

The little arms of the ring are giving a little congratulatory hug. Job well done.

@squidikka - 2023-12-22

Nile: "I have no idea where all the gold went!"
Also Nile: sanding, grinding, hammering

@24trumpets82 - 2023-12-22

💀

@MagnusMoerkoereJohannesen - 2023-12-22

It's hilarious watching how Nile's knowledge base is kinda a mile deep, and an inch wide :D

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts

@williamfowl8670 - 2023-12-22

He said in the video that he collected all the dust and dissolved it with the rest.

@Martin-zd8eb - 2023-12-22

Smashing some chunks through the lab 😂

@nilsgensert5814 - 2023-12-23

Can we just appreciate the fact that this guy took an arcane process only known to a few specialists and made an entire YT step-by-step that everyone can now see.
Congratulations, man!

@yanuk818 - 2023-12-23

Lee Hwa's not going to be happy 😂

@SkyEcho751 - 2023-12-23

"Purple gold is super difficult to work with" meanwhile he's making a whole ring of this stuff.

@whoeusbsknsi - 2023-12-23

⁠@@SkyEcho751lee hwa probably trying to scare away the competition

@Deboned_butter - 2023-12-23

@@yanuk818They’re gonna be very exited. Millions of people now know that purple gold jewelry exists.

@josephd.5524 - 2023-12-23

Lee Hwa Jewellery may be putting a hit out on him.

@oculusangelicus8978 - 2023-12-22

The loss of Gold was almost certainly connected to the Sanding portion of your working with it. You likely have a significant amount that is still in the matrix of the sandpaper you used, and there is also a loss of gold in dust form through air movement. I would suggest using a wet sanding method in a container or water where the gold dust will be collected in the water of the container. I also saw when you hammered earlier pieces of purple gold, small pieces flew off due to the brittle nature of the metal. and because gold is so heavy it doesn't take much gold loss to amount to 5 grams. but it is still a lot of gold to lose. so, if and when you decide to work with gold alloys again, make sure you are using a vacuum with a filter that can collect the gold dust or better yet just sand the gold inside of a water filled container to that all of the abraded gold can be kept from being lost. Also not go hammering any of those pieces anymore because metal does form into crystals when freezing and if it is brittle like the purple gold, you made hammering it will cause the crystals to break apart and some of them will shatter. to get an idea of how to keep all of your gold in a form that will minimize loss you should watch Sreetips and his gold refining videos, but it does little to show how to keep your dust to a minimum. Work your gold in a different medium than air, work it in water, or rather sand it in water. Your Dremel can be hooked up to a flex shaft and you can do your shaping of the gold in water as well. this will prevent loss but may not stop it all. when working with precious metals, jewelers have to accept a certain amount of loss, and this loss is figured into the price of the Jewelry being made. Sure, jewelers collect as much dust and granules of the precious metals they work with but it can never be truly all accounted for This is just the nature of the world we live in.

@eigentensor - 2023-12-22

Yeah it's absolutely hilarious that he says he has no idea how he lost it! The whole video long he's smashing stuff and pieces are flying off, tons of it going into the sandpaper, random blobs splashing out of the crucible, ...

@davehowell3209 - 2023-12-22

I was watching the sanding.. I agree.. he was also pretty aggressive.. plus the dremel tool .. that’s a lot of loss .. but makes sense

@redryder3721 - 2023-12-22

Liked the comment so that Nile sees this.

My suspicion was it went into dust form and just kind of permeated his environment. But likely a good floor sweeping, plus brushing his clothes, and recovering metal from the sandpaper, would help.

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed’s farts

@DannyDingus - 2023-12-22

Same thoughts here.

@Luvvias - 2024-09-27

My heart DROPPED when he faked dropping the liquid gold acid stuff

@gallium-gonzollium - 2023-12-23

2:06 “But for some reason, I really felt that I can do it”
50 minutes remaining
Nile, you’ve done it again

@alonzothompson8541 - 2023-12-23

I felt this in my adhd

@Shotgunspixie - 2024-07-15

This guy could get any freakin job he wanted and he's a chemist on YouTube

@HeavensAnarchist - 2024-11-09

Wth I didn't even know that I just finished a 50min video until I read this comment...

@scepticalchymist - 2024-01-15

There is also a "blue gold", that means a gold intermetallic phase with indium or gallium. Purple gold is also known as purple plague because it is an unwanted corrosion process of gold junctions in microchips.

@CUBETechie - 2024-01-20

Green Gold exist too😮

@CUBETechie - 2024-01-20

75% of gold, 15% of silver, 6% of copper and 4% of cadmium. This alloy is of dark green color.

@naftyloescher - 2024-01-22

@@CUBETechiebut it's dangerous to wear cause of the cadmium right?

@_Yuki.v. - 2024-01-22

@@naftyloescher I believe so, since it's toxic

@mc_fruchtzwerg - 2024-01-24

​@@_Yuki.v. well in jewelry production and gem stone treatment are multible toxic and even radioactive means used. the manufactures use unharmful amounts

@LLazorD - 2023-12-23

I worked in a Aluminum foundry. For degassing the metal the graphite rod had to be spinning with teeth at end to "chop up" the argon to grab more hydrogen. We also added strontium (less than 2%) to make the parts stronger

@fromthefire4176 - 2023-12-23

Woah what’s this about strontium? Lol

@SkyRimeheart - 2023-12-23

This is such a genuinely cool and insightful comment. It's so cool that you were able to bring experience from your work life into this neat purple gold video!

@nobodi12 - 2023-12-23

hope nile sees this

@remigiuszbudak7017 - 2023-12-23

O hello fellow foundry man. I am currently studying to work in a foundry

@TobeWilsonNetwork - 2023-12-23

@@fromthefire4176yeah would love a follow up on that Strontium business.

@FrostFire1310 - 2024-10-25

That's amazing work. I love that you decided to just go with your last attempt. While not a perfect ring you'd get from a jeweler, what you have is something with charm and uniqueness. Every time you look at it you'll be reminded of the trials it put you through, only to come out as a success. It's a beautiful ring, well done!

@chilomine839 - 2024-11-08

He didn't have "steady hands" is all. XD

@tribopower - 2023-12-29

I feel like this man single-handedly expanded the purple gold community from almost nothing to something in the eyes of the people

@blizzard_the_seal9863 - 2023-12-30

frrr

@Juicy.jett24 - 2023-12-30

A hundred percent

@AkaraEtteh - 2023-12-30

Smart marketing 👀😅

@ArcticAirUltraPro - 2023-12-30

He just filled the entire Wikipedia page single handedly,

@DaniGirl6 - 2023-12-30

The patent US6929776B1 looks to have expired in 2020. Maybe there will be more purple gold jewelry coming around using this method.

@johnlemus7921 - 2023-12-22

I come from a family of Jewelers with an over 50 year history of being in the business. Purple gold is not the only interesting color you can find the alloy in. In the early 2000s Green Gold suddenly became very popular for a brief time. Rose gold has been very common place for a long time as has white gold. The most striking color of it in my opinion is an alloy of either gallium or indium. It looks kind of like Cobalt. When I heard you wanted to break that bar down with a hammer my heart skipped a beat. Gold is incredibly mailable, the purer the bar the soft it is. You can also get a Jewelry Workers Kit for very cheap and it should have all the tools you need except for the for maybe the Manual Rolling Mill Machine.

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

my farts are better than NileRed’s farts 💨

@protek86 - 2023-12-22

@@p-__ he can chemically synthesize farts (video idea)

@LazySpaceRaptor - 2023-12-22

Do you have any more tips? I want to handcraft a set of rings by hammering, primarily for the look of a hammered surface.
I plan for them to be durable, reworkable, and entirely made of precious metals and/or their alloys.
I might make a piece for a necklace later on, idk

@brianreddeman951 - 2023-12-22

Amateur jeweler here, played with alloys of gold back in the early 2000s. You can also get various shades of pink. Purple is fun, maybe Nile will start a trend.
Tempting to go back to jewelry. So much you can do with semi precious stones and metals.😊

@JaxDax - 2023-12-22

Wow that sounds so cool! Can I intern for you guys lol 😂

@JoachimVampire - 2023-12-23

recap:

81 wt % GOLD
19% wt % ALUMINUM

- Prepare an inert gas (such as argon) and a melting station such as a furnace with a bubbling-capable apparatus made out of fused quartz (Alumina could be an alternative but must be tested)

- Make sure the gas if flowing towards the melting chamber (no bubbling needed yet) and it has removed as much oxigen/water as possible

- Melt the gold, the finer the particles the easier to measure and to melt too, precision is a MUST

- Throw the aluminum pieces on top of the gold puddle to allow easy melting and mixing with the gold

- Let it melt completelly, the hotter the easier to mix, but be careful because hot aluminum is VIOLENT. mix with graphite rod if possible, but make sure it's properly mixed.

- Proceed to the degassing phase, lower the bubbling apparatus and let it degas for AT LEAST 20 minutes, the bubles MUST be at a constant and decent rate. (ultrasonic vibrations may be used instead or in a combination, but the results must be tested still)

- Heat up a mold as much as humanly possible to avoid the alloy to freeze too quickly.

- pour the alloy into the mold and let it cool down slowly until room temperature.

(- at this point you can finish the shaping process, cutting the excess metal. remember that this alloy is not really workable.)

- Sand it and polish

- Anneal at 600ºC for about 20-30 mins

- Fall in love with the finished product.


thank you Nile for going through such an annoying process and explain us the process you followed so well. i'm on my quest to make a unique ring to propose to my girlfriend (but being poor sucks a lot) and my only desire is to home made it (to make it even more special) my idea is to accompany it with some artificial sapphire or ruby too (yeah, dreaming too high)

i'll make sure to show up on the patreon as a way to thank you.

@eggynub1096 - 2023-12-23

Pin this.

@Flesh_Wizard - 2023-12-23

Bro posted the recipe 💀

@adithyavsr1995 - 2023-12-23

Good luck with your proposal dude :)

@joeljustin - 2023-12-23

@@Flesh_Wizard Let him cook

@rubennadevi - 2024-09-28

Lee Hwa is a local well-established jewellery company here in Singapore and I didn’t know purple gold was uncommon or a pain to produce cause we get them so easily here.

@okay_sure-n9v - 2024-11-07

This is the first time I've heard of them since I'm in the US but now I have to get some purple gold from them 😂

@stedwards311 - 2023-12-23

Dude this is huge. You just provided a production process to small independent jewelers all over the internet for a really cool thing that the greater jewelry industry has dismissed as unprofitable. I have several ideas for how to improve your processes, based on my own past jewelsmithing experience as a hobby, and once I get my garage workshop set up, I can definitely see myself making some purple gold jewelry. Big thanks for sharing the info!

@SHRUGGiExyz - 2023-12-23

I hope you realize I'm subscribing to your channel and waiting patiently for you to join some of the few souls who've been willing to try their hands at AgAl alloy jewelry-ing! Here's wishing you good luck and god's speed on getting that garage workshop set up! I believe in you!

@cyborglion4179 - 2023-12-23

Good luck. Would love to see results

@danielknisell7018 - 2023-12-23

Rad. Artisans at work. Best of luck.

@williamsquires3070 - 2023-12-23

Except for one thing; the patent. It’s one thing to make small samples for personal use (like NileRed did here), but if you try to use this and sell the results, you’re going to have a lawsuit on your hands, or at least angry lawyers showing up with cease-and-desist orders. 😢

@thekoifishcoyote8762 - 2023-12-23

Tell us what you figure out. I'm not a jewelsmith but I love seeing people talk about things they love

@freemanjewelryworkshop - 2024-01-27

You’re not going crazy about the gold loss - in my workshop, we call it ‘Fairy Tax’ - a tax paid to the fairies for good luck on the piece. Works every time 😅

@firegodessreiko - 2024-02-01

Oh, interesting....kinda like the Angel's Share in distillery work. A little of your liquor volume is lost during the fermentation process due to evaporation~

@bonuscomment2492 - 2024-02-02

That’s perfect 😂

@markd.s.8625 - 2024-02-03

i thought the angel's share was the part lost during aging? ​@@firegodessreiko

@Element0145 - 2024-02-03

Pretty sure he didn’t add the stuff he sanded away , seems about right for the amount lost

@JSiuDev - 2024-02-04

@@Element0145 He properly did. But properly not the dust stick to the sand paper. You can only recover them by burning(or use the acid) the sand paper to ashes.

@All-Fur-Coat_No-Trousers - 2023-12-25

Smelting and casting are vastly complicated. I'm really impressed with how you trial-and-errored your way to the finish line. The ring is gorgeous

@pikachuchujelly7628 - 2023-12-26

He finally reached level 2 in smelting!

@lucianostegun - 2024-10-27

I can’t remember the last time I watched a full 50min video. This was just awesome!

@AltName7 - 2023-12-23

I love the premise of Nile coming into the jeweler space with his chemist perspective and finding a more convenient way to work with a difficult alloy.

@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721 - 2023-12-23

Worked better than when he tried to do the same with cookies.

@normancocksmell - 2023-12-23

He should patent his adaptations to the process.

@iankrasnow5383 - 2023-12-23

He should team up with a youtuber that focuses more on metals like CodysLab or a materials scientist like Alpha Phoenix.

@Ismft - 2023-12-24

I like that you don't just act like you researched and got it right first try. Showing your trials and errors along the way, and bringing us all on the journey with you is what makes this channel truly special.

@SeanY-wx9ht - 2023-12-24

124 likes and no comments? let me fix that

@AntrikshxD - 2023-12-24

True

@jirkas95 - 2023-12-24

And that’s what makes it interesting and fun

@p-__ - 2023-12-24

my farts are better than NileRed’s farts 💨

@BlackGryph0n - 2023-12-23

7:48 You gave me a freaking heart attack and I love you for it...

@ActionScripter - 2023-12-23

Yo, I listened to a bunch of your music back in the FiM days. Cool to see you around.

@redstowen - 2023-12-23

“oh no”
— NileRed 2023

@timr6318 - 2023-12-23

My jaw literally dropped

@demonicdragon6965 - 2023-12-23

Oh hey didn't think I would see you here

@tissuepaper9962 - 2023-12-23

I knew it was fake and it still made me squeal and gave me a jolt of adrenaline.

@secondo92 - 2024-10-31

Nile is the modern Sauron making the one purple gold ring to rule them all

@nariknova7433 - 2023-12-23

Man really just spent $8000 on gold, bought a CNC machine, and spent days purifying and re-smelting metal just to make a ring he doesn't think he will wear all that often. Legendary.

@dan4653 - 2023-12-23

It's about learning something, not having the thing you learned to make. I have a shop full of them too! Lol

@karabenomar - 2023-12-23

But look, it's purple!

@seelmodge7881 - 2023-12-23

that's how sciene works

@_DREBBEL_ - 2023-12-23

Anything for the content 😂

@jimmysyar889 - 2023-12-23

tbf the $8000 he spend will be still worth $8000 if he ever wants to sell it again

@nitrosake - 2023-12-22

I honestly like the gap in the ring, it's unique and looks way nicer than I thought it would.

@p-__ - 2023-12-22

My farts are better than NileRed's farts

@Knuffeldraak - 2023-12-23

My thoughts exactly. When I saw the gap in the mold, my creative mind just kept yelling like; Keep it! Embrace it! Work with it!

@existenceispain_geekthesiren - 2023-12-23

​@@p-__why the spam, man?

@kindlin - 2023-12-23

@@existenceispain_geekthesiren I saw a theory - he's satirizing the bots. (I'm surprised and a little impressed hat satirizing is an actual word, and not just one I created)

@DonnorThilton - 2023-12-23

yeah

@Jade-nn3bn - 2023-12-23

The missing gold is likely from the sanding and polishing. Even if you got all the fine dust that piled up, there was still probably some left on the sandpaper, especially with the finer grains.

@p-__ - 2023-12-24

My farts are more purple than NileRed’s farts 💨

@HappyGick - 2023-12-24

And casting. Some of the gold stuck to the crucible, unless Nile managed to get it out.

@nemoclavon566 - 2023-12-24

I agree atleast 95 percent of that 3 lost after the initial 1 percent lost from the 99.9 was from the sanding, the rest could have been some percent from the none gold or lost from the beaker.

@WorkOutAddict96 - 2024-10-07

MY HEART FRICKING SKIPPED A BEAT 😂7:50

@BrainfooTV - 2023-12-27

Respect. I know first hand how difficult and frustrating it is to cast metal with the minimum kit at home. Many times I’ve been on the tenth attempt to get something right and wasted days sanding. People often say online something cannot be done, until you’ve done it. For what it's worth, I would have CNC'd your walls as thin as possible and built in a little pouring shoot, then the expansion and contractions should break the mold not the ring.

@EdiiEli - 2023-12-27

hi

@BrainfooTV - 2023-12-27

@@EdiiEliHi

@paranoidzkitszo - 2023-12-27

Why not just CNC the ring instead of casting it?

@BrainfooTV - 2023-12-27

@@paranoidzkitszo Because it's cheating 😂

@thatwoomykid - 2023-12-27

HEY BRAINFOO