In reference to gold, in the power industry, we used silver plating a lot in our older relay/control circuits, the circuits that sense short circuits and overloads and subsequently trip circuit breakers on major transmission lines and equipment. I’m not sure what is used in the newest stuff - could still be silver or even gold. It’s been a number of years since I’ve been “hands-on”.
Silver was probably chosen because it is cheaper, and it is a bit harder than gold. It is a great conductor and is corrosion resistant also.
For primary transmission lines, Aluminum with a steel reinforcing core is used more often than anything. Aluminum is much lighter and cheaper than copper, and although not quite as good a conductor, it is still a better solution. A much larger wire size can be used with aluminum because of the weight. As a result, a much larger capacity can be used while still lighter and requiring less structural capacity on the towers, poles, and insulators.
In reference to gold, in the power industry, we used silver plating a lot in our older relay/control circuits, the circuits that sense short circuits and overloads and subsequently trip circuit breakers on major transmission lines and equipment. I’m not sure what is used in the newest stuff - could still be silver or even gold. It’s been a number of years since I’ve been “hands-on”....
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WOW! Thanks for the information which you know about from direct experience!