Why would your Tungsten Rings turn your finger green or any jewelry turn your skin green for that matter? The first thought people think of is that the ring is fake or that they are allergic to the metal. Yes in a lot of cases being allergic can be true, but not always so. There can be many reasons why your skin can react to a metal. When jewelry is created it has to go through a manufacturing process to first make the ‘blank’. The blank is simply plain there is no design, nothing to define it from any other. Usually the metal in this case tungsten is ground into a powder; sometimes carbon is added to add more strength to the tungsten. However a binder is also needed.
A binders purpose is only to help the material cohere. Cohere is defined as ‘stick together’. The two most common binders used in tungsten rings are cobalt and nickel. The US government set forth a standard formula that only allows so much of these binders to be used in the manufacturing of jewelry.
As cobalt and nickel are found in ores and are cheaper in cost, many manufacturers will fudge a little on the amounts to save money or maybe the calculations are off somehow by accident. There could be a number of reasons why the standard formula is not correct. In any case both cobalt and nickel work very well as binders but have different oxidation levels and chemical make ups.
Cobalt is an essential element for multi-cellular organisms and an active nutrient for bacteria and fungi. Cobalt can oxidize easily, therefore when used as a binder in a tungsten ring it can cause your body chemistry to react by turning your skin green, causing a rash or the sensation of heat.
Nickel is a very reactive element as well, but nickel reacts much slower in air with normal temperatures because it forms a protective surface. Because it’s slow reaction time under normal environmental circumstances there is less chance of any physical reaction that you will have to this binder.
Your best bet when looking for a tungsten carbide ring is to go with the nickel binder. Of course you won’t know which binder is used without asking the retailer. In a few cases the retailer may not know which binder has been use, but they can sometimes find out for you.
Usually with tungsten rings that have a nickel binder there are no issues, but if there should happen to be, you could be allergic to the nickel or there was too much nickel used. Even when the formula is correct the metals could have come in contact with another chemical that reacted to the metal. Sometimes simple cleaning is effective in fixing the problem. But like bleach that can react to other metals, permanent discoloration or tarnish like blemishes can appear.
Retailers usually work well with you if something happens that is out of the ordinary, they do not have to, it is just a benefit of a good store. Remember the retailer only sells the rings they do not make them. So, if you have an issue or questions talk to your seller about their policies before getting upset and don’t get upset with them.
