I'm a bit puzzled that this is news.<p>The technique of using metal or stone powder with resins to create fake metal or stones is used since years.<p>When I was living in HK, in Sham Shui Po, I always wondered why there were these street stalls selling huge blocks of jade for cheap. Later a local friend told me it was just blocks of resin with embedded jade powder and other stuff. E.g. other stones ground up to simulate imperfections and dyes for the resin.<p>When used with metal powders to create sculptures, jewelry, etc. the technique is called 'cold casting'.<p>See e.g. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VBVU3FNt-s" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VBVU3FNt-s</a><p>Ofc., people do this with gold too: <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/ResinCasting/comments/bfiixq/cold_cast_gold_dice_set_with_bonus_skull/" rel="nofollow">https://www.reddit.com/r/ResinCasting/comments/bfiixq/cold_c...</a><p>The problem with all this is that these materials have plastic-like properties. The article mentions the sound the fake gold nugget make when hitting a surface sounding like plastic. This is one of the issues.<p>The weight is another one. Surface feel/texture depends on various factors.<p>The bottom line is: these materials look like the real thing but they don't feel/sound/behave like it.