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For instance, did you know:
Fact 1: Platinum is very rare
Platinum is about 20 times rarer than gold. All the platinum ever mined would only cover your ankles in one Olympic sized swimming pool, while all the gold produced would fill three Olympic sized pools (Source:
Fact 2: Platinum can be recycled
Given its rarity, it's very important that we recycle platinum so it can be used again and again. JM is the world's largest recycler of platinum group metals. JM's PGM refineries take material from production scraps or end-of-life components and recycle it to produce 99.95% pure metal.
Fact 3: Platinum is tough
Not much touches platinum. It is very unreactive and resistant to corrosion. It's so tough and stable, in fact, that the standard metal bar that traditionally once defined a kilogram - made by JM in 1879 and housed at the
Fact 4: Platinum has helped control the emissions of vehicles since the 1970s
Platinum is an important catalyst, meaning it can be used to speed up chemical reactions without actually being consumed in them. When cities like
Fact 5: Platinum helps us get food on the table
Platinum is also used as a catalyst in the production of nitric acid. This nitric acid is then used to make fertilisers which help us grow a wide range of crops around the world. So platinum also plays a role in ensuring everyone has food on the table.
Fact 6: Platinum is fighting cancer
In the mid-sixties, a professor accidently discovered that platinum electrodes caused cells to behave in a way that would be useful in cancer drug applications. JM supplied the platinum for this research. This ground-breaking work in the early 70s led to the first ever platinum-based anticancer drug, cisplatin. Since then, JM scientists went on to develop a second generation of the drug, known as carboplatin. Now, around half of cancer chemotherapy patients use drugs containing platinum.
Fact 7: Platinum will play a critical role in a net zero future
Platinum has played an important role historically in helping power the latest inventions and helping people live healthier lives. And it will play just as important role in the future. Platinum is a key component of the catalysts inside electrolysers that produce green hydrogen from renewable electricity and water. This hydrogen is a truly fossil-free energy source, that can be used to power fuel cell vehicles, for heating and industrial uses. So platinum will play a critical role in the future as the world decarbonises to achieve net zero.
PGMs also include palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium and osmium.
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