tomato food corrosive

This is a slightly strange question; does any one know if tomato food can corrode gold? I noticed yesterday that my wedding ring has been corroded by something and the only thing I can think that I’ve touched recently which I don’t usually was tomato food. So – was it that or some mystery substance?

Matthew

Oh, and hello by the way!
I used to be arround on the old forum before i did my degree but three or four years studying i lost track of internet sites!

Welcome back Dave.

Gold, corrode? I thought it was pretty impervious to almost everything. Just checked and Wikipedia says "Gold has traditionally found use because of its good resistance to oxidative corrosion"

and

"but it is attacked by aqua regia (a mixture of acids), forming chloroauric acid, but not by the individual acids, and by alkaline solutions of cyanide. Gold dissolves in mercury, forming amalgam alloys, but does not react with it. Gold is insoluble in nitric acid, which dissolves silver and base metals. This property is exploited in the gold refining technique known as "inquartation and parting". Nitric acid has long been used to confirm the presence of gold in items, and this is the origin of the colloquial term "acid test""

So I'd be worried if it is gold and is being attacked by something that you've handled!

um...
maybe i scratched it really badly washing up and didnt notice. It's definately gold!

Thank you.

my trees have been in limbo for about 5 years - repotted and pruned occasionally but not really developed - on account of them being the other side of town in my parents garden!

Unless it's 24kt/99.99%, the base metal its cut with - like nickel in white gold and copper in red gold - may be vulnerable to attack as described above I would think.

Men's jewellery is usually 9kt or only 35.7% gold - the balance is a more base metal - unless you were lucky enough to spend time in UAE c 1985 where it was all 18 and 21kt and less than half the price of 9kt in the UK.

Twice as much bang/bling? for half of your buck.

I did resemble Mr T at one stage but have given a lot away.

Thks

TimR

Jackie forged our weddings rings out of 18 karat dental gold; nary an etch on them -- but they are bendable.

18 carat Gold is actually harder than 9 carat. A common myth dispelled.