The Journey of Daumet's Innovation: From Lab Breakthrough to Responsible White Gold
Daumet’s 18K white gold is the result of a pioneering journey in materials science. It began with fundamental research at CNRS Thales, led by Daumet's founder in collaboration with Nobel Prize winner Albert Fert. Their mission: to explore new materials for electronics, specifically for spintronics. This scientific endeavor led to an unexpected breakthrough that would eventually transform multiple industries. By successfully mixing gold and tungsten—two metals with similar volumic masses but never previously combined—they created an entirely new and more responsible family of gold alloys.
A Technological Breakthrough from the Lab
The initial research focused on improving electronic components by testing new gold alloys. In this process, the alloying of gold and tungsten proved to be a significant advancement in materials science. These metals, often seen as “twins” due to their similar mass, had never been alloyed before. The result was a gold-tungsten alloy that exhibited unique properties, offering potential solutions far beyond microelectronics.
The transition from research to real-world applications marked the birth of Daumet. The company was founded with a mission to bring this breakthrough to the market, providing innovative solutions to industries that heavily depend on precious metals. The gold-tungsten alloy offered a way to enhance the performance of materials while addressing critical sourcing and environmental challenges.
Solving Sourcing and Environmental Issues Across Industries
One of the major advantages of Daumet’s innovation lies in its ability to mitigate the environmental impact of using precious metals. Gold extraction is a resource-intensive process, requiring vast amounts of water and energy while causing significant ecological damage. Tungsten, on the other hand, is much more abundant and far less polluting to extract. By substituting gold with tungsten, Daumet reduces the need for extensive mining of precious metals, thereby lowering the carbon footprint associated with their usage.
The gold-tungsten alloy provides a durable, eco-friendly alternative that can be applied across a wide range of industries. From medtech and aerospace to automotive applications, this innovative material maintains the essential properties of gold—such as conductivity and chemical resistance—while being significantly more sustainable. In industries where thin film gold is used, Daumet’s alloy opens new possibilities for reducing both environmental impact and the risks associated with sourcing rare metals like palladium and rhodium. The economic benefits of these innovative alloys can also be significant.
Tackling the Rhodium Challenge in Jewelry
The first commercial use of Daumet’s gold alloy is the 18K whitest gold and focus on solving a pressing problem in the jewelry industry: the reliance on rhodium for white finishes. Rhodium, although prized for its bright appearance, poses several challenges. It is rare, environmentally damaging to extract, and its price has surged in recent years, creating volatility in the supply chain. Furthermore, rhodium plating tends to wear off over time, requiring frequent re-plating.
Daumet’s 18K white gold offers a more sustainable and durable solution. Using the gold-tungsten alloy, the company developed a white gold that not only rivals rhodium in brightness but also surpasses it in longevity and environmental responsibility.
A Broader Vision for Sustainable Innovation
Daumet’s 18K white gold solution for jewelry is just the first step in a broader vision to provide innovative materials that solve sourcing challenges and reduce environmental impact across industries. By focusing on the use of tungsten as a substitute for precious metals, Daumet is setting a new standard for responsible materials in sectors ranging from medtech to aerospace.
The company’s approach, grounded in sustainable materials science, ensures that industries can continue to use high-performing materials without contributing to the depletion of rare metals or increasing their ecological footprint. This vision aligns with global efforts to promote more sustainable consumption and production practices, making Daumet a key player in the future of responsible material sourcing.
From Breakthrough to Real-World Impact
Daumet’s journey from a laboratory discovery to a real-world application illustrates the potential of deep tech to solve critical challenges. The gold-tungsten alloy, initially developed for microelectronics, has evolved into a solution that addresses both the environmental and sourcing issues plaguing industries that depend on precious metals.
The company’s first success in jewelry— addressing the rhodium problem— demonstrates how scientific innovation can lead to more sustainable practices. With applications extending into numerous other fields, Daumet’s 18K white gold is just the beginning of a broader shift toward responsible, high-performance materials.
