There are several ways to identify which element you have, alloys not so much. Some things to take note of are, softness - can you cut it with a knife or scratch it with a fingernail, relative weight - is it heavy for its relative size, does it throw a spark when applied to a spinning grinding wheel, does it or the shavings ignite in the presence of a flame, do the shavings react with water, does the exterior have a white coating, what does a slice into the inside look like, is it ferrous, does it conduct electricity, and the most telling - its specific density. If you can find a very tiny container of a known size, and can sand or grind down enough dust from the metal to fill that container, then weigh that container, then calculate using your numbers exactly what a cubic centimeter container of the same stuff would weigh, then there are charts online that give the specific densities of other metals. Usually this method can get you in the ballpark as long as you are meticulous with your calculations and then the other tests listed above can help discern exactly which metal you have. Hope this helps.
Remember to wear a respirator, safety glasses, and gloves.
While all of what you said is correct, it seems like a waste of time for what is almost certainly aluminum or possibly zinc/pot metal. Very few metals appear as 'nuggets' naturally.
There are several ways to identify which element you have, alloys not so much. Some things to take note of are, softness - can you cut it with a knife or scratch it with a fingernail, relative weight - is it heavy for its relative size, does it throw a spark when applied to a spinning grinding wheel, does it or the shavings ignite in the presence of a flame, do the shavings react with water, does the exterior have a white coating, what does a slice into the inside look like, is it ferrous, does it conduct electricity, and the most telling - its specific density. If you can find a very tiny container of a known size, and can sand or grind down enough dust from the metal to fill that container, then weigh that container, then calculate using your numbers exactly what a cubic centimeter container of the same stuff would weigh, then there are charts online that give the specific densities of other metals. Usually this method can get you in the ballpark as long as you are meticulous with your calculations and then the other tests listed above can help discern exactly which metal you have. Hope this helps.
Remember to wear a respirator, safety glasses, and gloves.
I doubt it is platinum or Silver. VDI is too low for silver, and too high for platinum. VDI is right for aluminum.
That and the odds of finding a single nugget are extremely low, finding two in the same area are pretty much nil. Finding melted aluminum is very common.
Stranger things have happened. Heavy metals are delivered to the planet in the form of meteor. Some are bigger than others. Some contain more of one metal than another. In the entirety of the universe - gold, silver, platinum, etc are still pretty rare when compared to Iron and lighter elements. How much a planet has really depends upon the luck of the draw.
Look at the Comstock load. What is the odds of finding that much silver AND gold in one place?
That's how I found my beryllium bub and I'll waste my time however I darn well please