Thank you for your answers. There has been a number of answers involving
H2S and one other involving Br and I.
I am sending two versions for the people that also wanted to know
(including those who are on holidays in the sea right now!)
INITIAL MESSAGE:
Hello, i have recently walked on a shore in the Isle of Wight (Ryde), and
walking in a 0.5m thick stinking rotting seawead bed, i lost a shoe. While
digging with my hand to mine it, my truly silver ring became a dark copper
colour. This colour persisted despite the throrough washing with soap that
i did afterwards, and it only went away with rubbing. Regarding
that i did not feel any acid pain on my feet and hand although i had
some minor scars, i don't know what this was.
Does anyone have an answer?
ANSWER 1
Probably initially a reaction between the silver and any volatile
bromine or iodine released by the decaying seaweed. The resultant
silver compound, although white when pure, is unstable in the presence
of sunlight and breaks down to give a brown silver-silver halide
complex. Its the same basic reaction which is used in photography!
You could probably clean your ring with a little dilute ammonia
solution or sodium thiosulphate solution (from a photographers
suppliers or chemists) rather than scrubbing it!
ANSWER 2
I think the miraculous substance which is darkening your ring was sulfur.
Organic
materials, which are decaying, often have a certain content of Sufur or
sulfur
compounds,
e.g. H2S - Thats the one stinking like rotten eggs. The silver becommes
silversulfide
which is actually dark brown to black.
ANSWER 3
I would say that you experienced a reaction of your silver ring with some
available H2S (which give the bad smell) and H2SO4 (coming from the H2S
when
being in oxidising environment) what caused some oxidation of your silver
ring on its surface. Something what is very well know when going to
natural
hot springs which often contain traces of H2S and consequently some H2SO4.
But no worries it disappears by itself again after some time and will get
shiny again. To prevent that you might go for Gold, which is not affected
by anything like that and will stay shiny and nice under any conditions
you can shiny again. To prevent that you might go for Gold, which is not
affected by anything like that and will stay shiny and nice under any
conditions you can stand by yourself.
(actually my ring had some gold too which remained intact)
ANSWER 4
Could it possibly be H2S generated by the rotting seaweed
reacting with traces of lead in the silver to leave a thin
coating of Lead sulphide?
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