KARATS OR CARATS?.... CARROTS?
Jun 02 - 2022
WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 18 KARAT GOLD AND 9 KARAT GOLD
Mainly, durability and color… Due to its softness, 24K (pure) gold is alloyed/mixed with other base metals to alter its hardness, durability and appearance. Gold with a lower karat ratings, such as 14K or 9K contain higher ratios of base metals (lower the karat count, lower the presence of gold in the composition) such as Silver, Palladium, Nickel or Zinc in their alloy. 24K is pure gold in which one karat is 24ths of gold. Therefore…9k Gold is 9/24 = 37.5% Gold
14K is 14/24 = 58.3% Gold
18K= 18/24 = 75% Gold, and so on…
The ratio of alloy added, will affect the overall durability of the gold and the final color of the gold - 18K gold for instance, will be more durable and more Yellowy in color than 9K. (9K will be more durable.)
Did you Know... by law, gold must have a karat stamp, a hallmark, on it somewhere indicating its karat rating. Anything below 10K gold can not be sold as gold in the United States, though 9K and 8K old is sometimes sold as gold in other countries?
(India has recently passed a law whereby every pc of jewelry has to be marked with its individual Unique Identification called HUID. Thereby, helping consumers to know the geniunity of the product and also be able to track the product right from its source.) (we might need a full blog to discuss the details of HUID)
