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Nickel silver

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For the animal, seeAlpaca.

"German silver" hair comb by Bruce Caesar

Nickel silver,maillechort,German silver,[1]argentan,[1]new silver,[1]nickel brass,[2]albata,[3]oralpacca[4]is acopperalloywithnickel,and oftenzinc.The usual formulation is 60% copper, 20% nickel and 20% zinc.[5]Nickel silver does not contain the elementsilver.It is named for its silvery appearance, which can make it attractive as a cheaper and more durable substitute. It is also well suited for beingplatedwith silver.

A naturally occurring ore composition in China was smelted into the alloy known aspaktongorbáitóng(Bạch đồng) ('white copper' orcupronickel). The nameGerman Silverrefers to the artificial recreation of the natural ore composition by German metallurgists.[6][7][8]All modern, commercially important, nickel silvers (such as those standardized underASTMB122) contain zinc and are sometimes considered a subset ofbrass.[9]

History[edit]

Tracing a cross onto a piece of crude nickel silver at a workshop in San Miguel Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico

Nickel silver was first used inChina,where it wassmeltedfrom readily available unprocessed ore.[8][10]During theQing dynasty,it was "smuggled into various parts of theEast Indies",despite a government ban on the export of nickel silver.[11]It became known in the West from imported wares calledbaitong(Mandarin) orpaktong(Cantonese) (BạchĐồng,literally "white copper" ), for which the silvery metal colour was used to imitatesterling silver.According toBerthold Laufer,it was identical tokhar sini,one of the seven metals recognized byJābir ibn Hayyān.[12]

In Europe, consequently, it was at first calledpaktong,which is about the waybaitongis pronounced in the Cantonese dialect. The earliest European mention ofpaktongoccurs in the year 1597. From then until the end of the eighteenth century there are references to it as having been exported from Canton to Europe.[13]

German artificial recreation of the naturalpaktongore composition, however, began to appear from about 1750 onward.[13]In 1770, theSuhlmetalworks were able to produce a similar alloy.[14]In 1823, a German competition was held to perfect the production process: the goal was to develop an alloy that possessed the closest visual similarity to silver. The brothers Henniger inBerlinandErnst August GeitnerinSchneebergindependently achieved this goal. The manufacturer Berndorf named the trademark brandAlpacca,which became widely known in northern Europe for nickel silver. In 1830, the German process of manufacture was introduced into England, while exports ofpaktongfrom China gradually stopped. In 1832, a form of German silver was also developed inBirmingham, England.[15]

After the modern process for the production of electroplated nickel silver was patented in 1840 byGeorge Richards Elkingtonand his cousin Henry Elkington in Birmingham, the development of electroplating caused nickel silver to become widely used. It formed an ideal, strong and bright substrate for the plating process. It was also used unplated in applications such as cutlery.[citation needed]

Uses[edit]

Nickel silver pieces from the Ruth Cortez Rodriguez workshop in Mexico

Nickel silver first became popular as a base metal for silver-platedcutleryand othersilverware,notably theelectroplatedwares called EPNS (electroplated nickel silver). It is used inzippers,costumejewelry,for making musical instruments (e.g.,flutes,clarinets), and is preferred for the track in electricmodel railwaylayouts, as itsoxideis conductive[citation needed].Better qualitykeysandlock cylinder pinsare made of nickel silver for durability under heavy use. The alloy has been widely used in the production ofcoins(e.g.Portuguese escudoand the formerGDRmarks). Its industrial and technical uses include marine fittings and plumbing fixtures for its corrosion resistance, and heating coils for its high electrical resistance.

In the nineteenth century, particularly after 1868, North AmericanPlains Indianmetalsmiths were able to easily acquire sheets of German silver. They used them to cut, stamp, and cold hammer a wide range of accessories and also horse gear. Presently, Plains metalsmiths use German silver for pendants, pectorals, bracelets, armbands, hair plates,conchas(oval decorative plates for belts), earrings, belt buckles, necktie slides, stickpins,dush-tuhs,andtiaras.[16]Nickel silver is the metal of choice among contemporaryKiowaand Pawnee inOklahoma.Many of the metal fittings on modern higher-end equine harness andtackare of nickel silver.

Early in the twentieth century, German silver was used by automobile manufacturers before the advent of steel sheet metal. For example, the famousRolls-RoyceSilver Ghost of 1907. After about 1920, it became widely used for pocketknifebolsters,due to its machinability and corrosion resistance. Prior to this, the most common metal wasiron.

19th century banjos used German silver rims over wood for tonal quality and appearance

Musical instruments, including theflute,saxophone,trumpet,andFrench horn,string instrument frets, and electric guitar pickup parts, can be made of nickel silver. Many professional-level French horns are entirely made of nickel silver.[17]Some saxophone manufacturers, such asKeilwerth,[18][19]offer saxophones made of nickel silver (Shadow model); these are far rarer than traditional lacquered brass saxophones. Student-level flutes and piccolos are also made of silver-plated nickel silver,[20]although upper-level models are likely to usesterling silver.[21]Nickel silver produces a bright and powerful sound quality; an additional benefit is that the metal is harder and more corrosion resistant than brass.[22]Because of its hardness, it is used for most clarinet, flute, oboe and similar wind instrument keys, normally silver-plated. It is used to produce the tubes (called staples) onto whichoboereedsare tied.

Many parts of brass instruments are made of nickel silver, such as tubes, braces or valve mechanism. Trombone slides of many manufacturers offer a lightweight nickel silver (LT slide) option for faster slide action and weight balance.[23]The material was used in the construction of the National triconeresophonic guitar.Thefretsof guitar, mandolin, banjo, bass, and related string instruments are typically nickel silver. Nickel silver is sometimes used as ornamentation on thegreat highland bagpipe.

Willem Lenssinck,Formula 1 Racing Horse

Nickel silver is also used in artworks. The Dutch sculptorWillem Lenssinckhas made several pieces from German silver. Outdoors art made from this material easily withstands all kinds of weather.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcPrinciples of Metallurgy.Forgotten Books. p. 62.ISBN978-1-4400-5699-4.
  2. ^Gayle, Margot; Look, David W.; Waite, John G. (April 1993). "Pt. 1, A Historical Survey of Metals; Pt. 2, Deterioration and Methods of Preserving Metals".Metals in America's Historic Buildings: Uses and preservation 5reatments.Cultural Resources, Preservation Assistance. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. p. 35.ISBN978-0-16-061655-6– via Google books.
  3. ^Oxford English Dictionary
  4. ^"Marks of Alpacca and Alpacca-Silver II products".Association of Small Collectors of Antique Silver (ASCAS) (Ascasonline.org).Marks of Berndorf Metalware Factory in Austria.Retrieved19 December2013.
  5. ^McCreight, Tim.The Complete Metalsmith.
  6. ^Rosenberg, Samuel J.Nickel and its alloys.Monograph. Vol. 106. National Bureau of Standards. p. 8.6.
  7. ^Pinn, Keith.Paktong: The Chinese alloy in Europe.
  8. ^abNeedham, Joseph;Wang, Ling; Lu, Gwei-Djen;Tsien, Tsuen-hsuin;Kuhn, Dieter; Golas, Peter J. (1974).Science and Civilisation in China.Cambridge University Press. pp. 237–250.ISBN0-521-08571-3.
  9. ^"Nickel Silver".makeitfrom.com.Retrieved19 April2010.
  10. ^Oberg, Erik; Jones, Franklin Day (1917).Machinery's Encyclopedia.The Industrial Press. p. 412.The alloy came originally from China, where its composition is said to have been known.
  11. ^Dana, James Dwight (1869).Manual of Mineralogy.p. 265.smuggled into various parts of the East Indies... and is not allowed to be carried out of the empire
  12. ^Holmyard, E.J. (1957).Alchemy.New York, NY: Dover. p. 80.
  13. ^abBodde, Derk.China's gifts to the West.New York, NY: Columbia University.
  14. ^Neumann, Bernhard (1904).Die Metalle: Geschichte, Vorkommen und Gewinnung, nebst ausführlicher Produktions - und Preis - Statistik. Vom "Verein zur Beförderung des Gewerbefleisses" preisgekrönte Arbeit.W. Knapp. p. 327.ISBN9785877316324.
  15. ^Neumann, B. (1903)."Die Anfänge der Argentan- (Neusilber)-Industrie und der technischen Nickelerzeugung".Zeitschrift für Angewandte Chemie.16(10): 225.Bibcode:1903AngCh..16..225N.doi:10.1002/ange.19030161004.
  16. ^Dubin, Lois Sherr.North American Indian Jewelry and Adornment: From Prehistory to the Present.New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1999.ISBN0-8109-3689-5., pp. 290–293.
  17. ^[1]Archived10 February 2012 at theWayback Machine
  18. ^[2][dead link]
  19. ^[3]Archived4 November 2008 at theWayback Machine
  20. ^Quantz505 – Pearl Flute WorldwideArchived7 February 2012 at theWayback Machine.Pearlflute.com. Retrieved on 2013-12-19.
  21. ^Elegante – Pearl Flute WorldwideArchived7 February 2012 at theWayback Machine.Pearlflute.com. Retrieved on 2013-12-19.
  22. ^[4]Archived6 October 2011 at theWayback Machine
  23. ^Bach > Professional Bb Tenor Trombones > Viewing Model LT16MArchived16 October 2011 at theWayback Machine.Bachbrass.com. Retrieved on 2013-12-19.

External links[edit]

Wikisourcehas the text of the1911Encyclopædia Britannicaarticle "German Silver".
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