Anne Helmenstine is a science writer and scientist with multidisciplinary training. She holds bachelor of arts degrees in physics and mathematics from Hastings College (Hastings, Nebraska) and a doctorate of philosophy in biomedical sciences from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN).
Dr. Helmenstine is the owner of the Science Notes website, started in 2013. From 2001 to 2017, she was the chemistry expert for About.com. In 2017, About became ThoughtCo. She wrote articles for ThoughtCo until 2023. She has been writing science articles for websites since 2001.
Dr. Helmenstine has been a college professor and scientist. She is also a musician and jewelry design artist. Interests include travel, water sports, and amateur astronomy.
She is presently a full-time freelance science writer, illustrator, and photojournalist, working out of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
You’re welcome to use the table for your book. All we ask is credit to the author and website. Best wishes, Anne
Hi Bob,
Electrum is a gold alloy that contains at least 20% silver, plus assorted other metals. Because it doesn’t have a fixed composition (i.e., there is no set “formula” for the alloy), you can’t really calculate it. My advice: Use the values for 14k gold for ballpark values (14k gold typically contains copper in place of silver, but both are excellent electrical and thermal conductors, so the values should be close).
If you had a particular sample of electrum, you could find electrical and thermal conductivity. Electrical conductivity comes from the resistance using the equation: ρ=l/AR, where where ρ is conductivity, l is length, A is cross sectional area and R is resistance. So, the dimensions of an item determine its conductivity. Thermal conductivity is more complicated (https://www.intechopen.com/books/insulation-materials-in-context-of-sustainability/the-review-of-some-commonly-used-methods-and-techniques-to-measure-the-thermal-conductivity-of-insul).
Personally, I would not want to wear thermally conductive armor in either the heat or the cold. This comes from my experience wearing metal jewelry opening the oven door and going outside in winter. The wearer will feel the temperature change very quickly. Also, because electrum is mostly gold, it’s very heavy! On the plus side, it confers some radiation protection 😉