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Yes. Gold is about 2.5x as dense as steel; gold is about 19.3 g/cc while steel is about 7.8 g/cc. So, I'd expect it to show up as significantly more opaque in
by toss1 3y ago
Yes. Gold is about 2.5x as dense as steel; gold is about 19.3 g/cc while steel is about 7.8 g/cc.
So, I'd expect it to show up as significantly more opaque in x-ray imaging. I wonder if it would have been noticed if they made all the components out of gold (so they all show up with similar density) or if the operator or a feature of the imaging software would notice that the whole thing was unusually dense.
I also expect that they might have noticed the units were exceptionally heavy, if all the components were gold.
Not an easy problem to solve, as our protagonist smuggler found out.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- extraduder_ire 3y agoIt would have been much harder to fabricate, but tungsten would be the ideal cover for this as it's almost the exact same density as gold. It's often used in fake gold bars even, where tungsten rods or slugs are cast into a bar in a way that's undetectable without either breaking it open or using a ultrasound technique. I think tungsten carbide is less dense though, so making fake drill bits wouldn't work.
- ryandrake 3y agoYou could make fake bucking bars, commonly used in metalworking. The whole point of them is to be small enough to fit in your hand but dense enough to backstop a rivet gun, so they are very heavy for their size. Perfect form factor for gold bars, too.
- ratg13 3y agoIt doesn’t matter if it’s gold, tungsten, or lead.. the x-ray can’t see through it. If the x-ray can’t see through it, it’s going to get inspected as a possible place where drugs are being smuggled.