The question of whether one element can be changed into another has fascinated people for millennia. Technically, silver can become gold, but not through ordinary chemical reactions. Chemistry involves only the electrons orbiting an atom’s nucleus. To change silver, or any element, into gold, you must alter the number of protons within the atom’s nucleus. This process is known as nuclear transmutation, which requires immense energy and specialized equipment.
The Dream of Alchemy
The concept of turning base metals into noble metals like gold was the central ambition of alchemy, the philosophical pursuit that preceded modern chemistry. Alchemists believed all metals were composed of the same primary matter, differing only in purity or maturity. They viewed metals like lead and silver as “immature” forms of the perfect metal, gold.
The goal was to accelerate this natural maturation process, purifying the metal from its imperfect state. This mythical agent of transformation was known as the Philosopher’s Stone, thought to achieve chrysopoeia, or the creation of gold. Though their methods were chemical and failed to achieve true elemental change, the alchemists laid the groundwork for future scientific inquiry.
The Science of Transmutation
An element’s identity is defined by its atomic number, the count of protons in its nucleus. Silver (Ag) has 47 protons, while gold (Au) has 79. Transmuting silver into gold would require adding 32 protons to the silver nucleus, a process too complex to be a practical route to synthesis.
A more manageable transformation involves elements closer to gold on the periodic table, such as mercury (Hg), which has 80 protons. Scientists have successfully transmuted mercury into gold by removing just one proton from the mercury nucleus. This is achieved by bombarding the target element with high-energy subatomic particles, such as neutrons or protons, typically within a particle accelerator or a nuclear reactor. The resulting nuclear reaction physically alters the nucleus, changing the element’s atomic number and identity.
The Reality of Nuclear Change
While transmutation is scientifically proven, the process is prohibitively impractical for commercial purposes. The immense energy required to overcome the strong nuclear force and change the nucleus is enormous. Specialized equipment, such as high-energy particle accelerators, must be used to fire the necessary particles at the target material.
The cost of operating this equipment and generating the required energy far exceeds the value of the minuscule amount of gold produced. Estimates suggest synthesizing gold this way costs a trillion times the market price of mined gold. Furthermore, the nuclear reactions often produce unstable, radioactive isotopes, not the stable gold-197 isotope found naturally. These radioactive products decay quickly and are unusable for currency or jewelry. It remains vastly more cost-effective to mine gold from the earth than to synthesize it in a laboratory.