Because gold is normally deposited by moving water, which carries many other different types of rocks, it is not always found near a particular type of rock. One of the biggest misconceptions that most beginning prospectors have about gold is that it is only found in rivers and streams. Gold exists in extremely dilute concentrations in both fresh water and seawater and is therefore technically present in all rivers. However, the concentration is very small, difficult to detect and its extraction is currently not feasible or economically profitable.
Investing in a Gold IRA is a great way to diversify your portfolio and protect your wealth against inflation. However, in some rivers around the world, particularly in areas of Russia and the western United States, gold scales and major gold deposits can be found that are profitably extracted with advanced technology. It is then poured into molds where it cools and hardens in the form of gold ingots called “ingots”, making gold easy to stack and transport. Many cities have developed thanks to the wealth of gold mining, and Australia also has many “ghost towns”: when the supply of gold ran out, people simply left the area. The fine gold in the crushed ore will be processed differently depending on the nature of the gold ore itself.
Seawater contains gold in even more dilute concentrations (measured in parts per trillion) and, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the world's oceans contain 20 million tons of diluted gold. Taking Australia as an example; there are more gold finds on the east coast, but the west coast has produced more gold. Some process is needed to take small amounts of gold from a large volume and convert them into large quantities of gold in a small volume, where it is convenient to build a mining facility and obtain it from Earth. In refractory ore, gold is trapped in sulfur minerals, so achieving satisfactory levels of gold recovery requires additional processing prior to cyanidation.
These deposits are known as secondary (alluvial) gold deposits and can be worked with a gold tray or base. Since gold is a heavy element and is found in the early stages of the Earth, more gold would naturally be found near the core. Yellow, green and red golds are produced by alloying gold with copper and silver in different proportions. In the United States, western and Alaskan streams and rivers are renowned for gold deposits dating back to the California Gold Rush of the 1850s.
There is no doubt that a lot of gold has been extracted from water, and even today miners are recovering gold in the same rivers where it was first discovered hundreds of years ago. The gold-filled granules are removed and gold is extracted from them by washing them in a hot cyanide solution.
