One of the rarest metal:

  

Rh 45:

From Yuviverse, Knowledge is social power.

 

Hello everybody, I am back with an enticing topic for Yuviverse. So let’s begin, shall we?

I studied a topic a few years ago in school. Our topic was based on metals. In that, our teacher mentioned a little bit about one of the rarest metals on Earth. That, you might have guessed by the topic’s name, is Rhodium.

Rhodium is a silver-white metallic element that is highly reflective and resistant to corrosion. It is considered well above gold or silver as it is the most valuable, precious and rarest metal in the world. The name rhodium comes from the Greek word “rhodon,” meaning rose, named for the rose-red colour of its salts.

Now, you may be thinking what is so interesting in rhodium and how it is so precious? Well, I am going to explain it to you. Rhodium is one of the six platinum group metals: platinum, palladium, rhodium, osmium, iridium and ruthenium. It is also classified as a noble metal, meaning that it does not react to oxygen easily, acts as a fantastic catalyst and is resistant to corrosion and oxidation. Rhodium was discovered in 1803 by English chemist William Hyde Wollaston, shortly after he had discovered the element palladium.

Rhodium is the rarest of all non-radioactive metals. It occurs uncombined in nature, along with other platinum metals, in river sands in North and South America. It is also found in the copper-nickel sulphide ores of Ontario, Canada. Rhodium is obtained as a by-product of copper and nickel refining. 

You may be wondering, if Rhodium is formed in river sands, why is it the rarest metal on Earth?

It is because Rhodium comprises only 0.0002 parts per million of our Earth's crust and hence it is one of the rarest elements. This scarcity increases its price and so it has very little commercial or industrial uses. Like ruthium, rhodium is a waste product of nuclear fission from Ur-235. Now you may also ask that why it is considered well above gold and silver. The significant commercial use of rhodium is in automobile catalytic converters. This application reduces harmful emissions from cars by converting carbon monoxide and other gases into less poisonous gases. If there were no catalytic converters in cars there would be no provision to reduce toxic by-products like nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons into less hazardous substances such as carbon dioxide, water vapour and nitrogen gas. 87.2% of the rhodium produced goes into catalytic converters. 

Now here comes the stunning part. Did you know that rhodium is also used in jewellery? Yes, Rhodium flashing is the process of electroplating white gold or platinum with a reflective coating. This process is used in jewellery making, as well as the rhodium process of coating silver to prevent tarnishing during wear. Rhodium is also used in pacemakers because it has a low electrical resistance and is highly resistant to corrosion; it is used as an electrical contact material as well, according to RSC (Royal Society of Chemistry).

So, I guess, now you understand, why Rhodium is one of the rarest and most precious amongst the commonly used precious metals. So next time when you have someone gift you a piece of jewellery, you sure know what to ask for 😉

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