Silver is not a popular metal among vampires due to its traditional use in mirrors, which makes it impossible for vampires to see their reflection, and its ability to burn their skin upon contact. The belief that silver has antimicrobial properties and can drive away evil spirits likely led to its widespread use as a vampire repellent in the 18th century. From a scientific standpoint, exploring the reaction between silver and vampire skin has been a captivating area of interest. The focus is on understanding why silver has harmful effects on vampires and if another metal could be more efficient.[1]
Since little is known about the biology and anatomy of vampires, certain assumptions must be made. Given that vampire skin can burn from sunlight, one can logically conclude, that their skin has a different composition to that of humans. [2] If Twilight is considered a reliable source, it implies that the skin must be made of a substance that sparkles in the sun.[3]
During my research, I discovered that vampires can turn humans into their kind by letting them drink their blood. This suggests that the molecules responsible for the strange behavior of vampire physiology are somehow already present in their blood system.[4] As veins and blood vessels run throughout the skin as a nutrient transport system, it is possible that for that reason the skin possesses the aforementioned characteristics like sparkling or heightened sun sensitivity.[5] It is important to note that vampire blood may not contain hemoglobin due to their lack of need for oxygen (as they are deceased). However, as it has to contain a photosensitive chemical that reacts strongly with silver and is soluble in water, potassium permanganate (KMnO4) could be a suitable candidate. Due to its antiseptic properties, this may explain why vampire wounds heal faster than human wounds. Additionally, the blackening of human veins during the transformation into a vampire may be attributed to the toxicity and dark colour of potassium permanganate. But then again, I am a chemist and not a biologist.
Now that a probable candidate for the substance in vampire blood has been found, it would be interesting to determine which metal reacts more strongly with KMnO4 than silver. Since potassium permanganate is a strong oxidising agent, we must now take a look at the reduction potential of different metals.[6] Silver has a reduction potential of +0.8 V. Metals that release their electrons more easily than silver include sodium with a reduction potential of -2.71 V, aluminium with -1.66 V, and magnesium with -2.38 V.[7] When evaluating the practicality of these metals, such as their ability to be forged into a sword, each metal presents its own unique set of challenges. The advantage of an aluminium sword is that it would be much lighter than a sword made of pure silver. Aluminium, however, forms an oxide layer just like magnesium, which could influence the effectiveness of the sword. Using these metals as alloys or incorporating them into a composite material to improve specific properties would therefore be a more appropriate approach.[8] [9] It is unnecessary to mention the violent reaction that would occur if a sword made of sodium metal were to come into contact with water. Although it would likely result in the death of the vampire in some way or another.[10]
Compared to these reactive metals, the traditional silver sword is less reactive, has a noble appearance and is easier processed into a sword. That makes silver still the more obvious choice. However, determining whether silver is the most effective metal against vampires is a complex matter. Their anatomy is not well understood, making it difficult to evaluate the suitability of any material. Additionally, if another metal reacts stronger with vampire skin than silver, it may not be practical for everyday use. There is also a slight chance, that the effectiveness of silver against vampires is only due to magic, but even then, magic can be thought of as science that has not yet been fully understood.
[1] footnote{ Booseum: Vampires! (o. D.). Carnegie Museum of Natural History https://carnegiemnh.org/booseum-vampires/#:~:text=Mirrors\%20were\%20traditionally\%20backed\%20with,to\%20scare\%20off\%20a\%20vampire.
[2] Vampedia, C. T. (2023). Sunlight. Vampedia. https://vampires.fandom.com/wiki/Sunlight/
[3] Tyler, A. (2020, 28. Juli). Twilight: Why the Cullens & other vampires sparkle in sunlight. ScreenRant. https://screenrant.com/twilight-movies-vampires-cullens-sparkle-sun-reasons-explained/
[4] Schultens, A. (2023, 5. Dezember). Fabelwesen: Vampire. Planet Wissen. https://www.planet-wissen.de/kultur/fabelwesen/vampire/index.html
[5] Wikipedia-Autoren. (2002, 22. November). Hämoglobin. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/H\%C3\%A4moglobin
[6] GESTIS-StoffDatenbank. (o. D.). https://gestis.dguv.de/data?name=004070
[7] Wikipedia-Autoren. (2004, 23. August). Elektrochemische Spannungsreihe. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elektrochemische_spannungsreihe
[8] Aluminium. (o. D.). https://www.chemie.de/lexikon/Aluminium.html[accessed 21.12.2023
[9] Wikipedia-Autoren. (2001, 21. Juli). Magnesium. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium
[10] Wikipedia-Autoren. (2002a, Juli 2). Natrium. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natrium
