Silver

Silver is a shiny white precious metal. The soft and easily formable heavy metal has one of the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of all metals. Approximately 20% of the silver is extracted from silver ore, whereby it can also be extracted from lead ore and copper ore. Silver has a bactericidal, i.e. a slightly toxic, property. Therefore silver is used for medical purposes such e. g. used for wound dressings, for medical devices or as a coating. Silver ions are used in disinfectants and therapeutic agents because silver ions can have a bacteriostatic or bactericidal effect and thus kill pathogens. In addition to the currency function, silver is also used as jewelry, for silver medals and for musical instruments.