Golden opportunities

Gold bars

Source: Shutterstock

Elinor Hughes finds out how chemists are challenging a misconception about gold

Look inside a school chemistry textbook and you’ll find that gold only has a small section dedicated to it and it usually says something along the lines of: gold is a soft shiny metal, it is unreactive and alloys with silver or copper are used in jewellery and coins. But, there’s so much more to gold. It can be used to catalyse the process that occurs in catalytic converters and in a process to clean wastewater, for example. It even catalyses the reaction that deodorises toilets in Japan. So, why is gold generally considered to be unreactive?

Sign in or register to find out how chemists are exploring gold's role as a catalyst

Thanks for using Education in Chemistry. You can view one Education in Chemistry article per month as a visitor. 

A photograph of a teacher standing in a white lab coat, speaking with a class of children in a laboratory, is superimposed on a colourful background. Text reads "Teach Chemistry means support for classroom and staff room".

Register for Teach Chemistry for free, unlimited access

Registration is open to all teachers and technicians at secondary schools, colleges and teacher training institutions in the UK and Ireland.

Get all this, plus much more:

  • unlimited access to resources, core practical videos and Education in Chemistry articles
  • teacher well-being toolkit, personal development resources and online assessments
  • applications for funding to support your lessons

Already a Teach Chemistry member? Sign in now.

Not eligible for Teach Chemistry? Sign up for a personal account instead, or you can also access all our resources with Royal Society of Chemistry membership.