Swae Lee Teaches Science

Sometimes, you find a rare gem on Tiktok that has absolutely no context but is entertaining and educational. Today, that gem is rapper Swae Lee explaining how yellow gold becomes white gold.

The Procedure in the Video

Swae Lee starts off by putting the yellow gold ring on a wire that has electricity running through it, "over a thousand volts" according to Swae. The wire with the ring is then connected to another machine that contains chemicals, forming a circuit with an attached battery. This machine is the electrode cleaner. The ring is then placed in another solution, and a reaction takes place. Once he pulls the ring out, it's a shiny white gold!

The video didn't go into too much detail, but there are two potential ways of creating white gold that are commonly used.

Method 1 - Electrolysis

Electrolysis is a process where an electrical current stream flows between two electrodes and through an electrolyte. During this process, metal ions are transferred through a solution. This seems to be the method used in the Tiktok. Typically, the electrolytic refining process for gold uses hydrochloric acid as the electrolyte. The electric current ionizes the electrolyte and transfers dissolved gold, and essentially purifies the gold.

Method 2 - Electroplating

On the other hand, electroplating is the process of coating gold with another metal. Plated gold is usually rhodium plated, but alternatives include platinum and palladium. Ideally, any metal can be used to coat another. However, there are some extra things to consider, such as how quickly other metals tarnish or react with the skin, but overall this seems to be the method used by a lot of major jewelry stores.

The process of turning gold into different colours is fun to see, and the process is fairly simple to understand as well! Plus, seeing rappers like Swae Lee encourage science education helps motivate future generations of scientists. It encourages a conversation around jewelry and the reactions to produce different types of metals to wear. It's easy to be conned out of money when in a store with sparkling rings everywhere, but understanding the true worth of the accessories can help us be smarter consumers. It also prevents big jewelry companies from selling sub-par items, because they can be called out by basic chemical reactions!

On a last note, I have to award some bonus points to Swae Lee for making sure he had protective eyewear, but maybe some minus points for the lack of sleeves or gloves when working with chemicals.