Most of precious metals have been added to our planet when Earth was hit by asteroidal material. The gold and platinum that we see on Earth today may have come from outer space following a mammoth meteorite shower more than four billion years ago,scientists have claimed.
Platinum in the Earth's crust originates from ultra-mafic igneous rocks. It can therefore be associated with rocks like chromite and olivine. In nature, pure platinum is unknown and well formed crystals are very rare. Platinum is typically found as nuggets and grains.
Platinum also may be found as a byproduct of processing other metals like nickel and copper. Most platinum is derived from a mineral called cooperite, also known as platinum sulfide. Platinum is even found in outer space. "Platinum has also been discovered in heavy concentrations in meteorites — first reported in F. G.
The main reason for this is that precious metals are priced by weight, and platinum is much denser than gold, meaning it will be heavier. Another reason why platinum rings are more valuable than gold is because the metal is much rarer.
Platinum is an extremely rare metal, occurring at a concentration of only 0.005 ppm in Earth's crust. It is sometimes mistaken for silver. Platinum is often found chemically uncombined as native platinum and as alloy with the other platinum-group metals and iron mostly.
Platinum and osmiridium (an alloy of osmium and iridium) have been found in alluvial gold deposits at Turtons Creek, Stockyard Creek and Waratah Bay, all close to Foster in south Gippsland.
Platinum is 30 times more rare than gold. If all the platinum ever mined were melted and poured into an Olympic-sized pool, the platinum would barely reach your ankles. Gold, however, would fill three pools.
Some investors may want to prioritize stability and long-term investing. In that case, gold is likely the better option. The precious metal has a longstanding history of reliable demand which often spikes during economic downturns. On the other hand, platinum usually performs better during times of economic growth.
At its peak, platinum was more than twice the price of gold. And until the current decade, even at its depths, it had rarely sunk below the gold price.
Supply issues
The refined mine supply of platinum dropped 18% year-on-year in 2022, according to the WPIC, with South Africa and Russia having seen the biggest decreases.
An adult human body weighing 70 kg contains about 0.2 milligrams of gold. It's been found that the element plays an important health function, helping to maintain our joints, as well as facilitating the transmittal of electrical signals throughout the body.
The largest platinum nuggets ever found were discovered in stream deposits in the Ural Mountains, Russia. The largest was found in 1843 and weighed 9.635 kilograms.
Some of these asteroid impacts were so violent they could have vaporised the early seas back into the atmosphere. And they continued to pummel the Earth for a few hundred million years, bringing with them a precious cargo: platinum-group metals.
These high energy Helium particles are used to bombard Osmium element. Then elements Helium and Osmium undergo cold fusion process that they are combined to produce element Platinum.
Within this neutron-rich debris, large quantities of some of the universe's heaviest elements were forged, including hundreds of Earth masses of gold and platinum.
Platinum is commonly used in jewellery and electronics. Although this precious metal looks great and is an excellent conductor, it has no magnetic properties.
1. RHODIUM: TOP MOST VALUABLE METAL. Rhodium is the most valuable metal and exists within the platinum group of metals. It is used in jewelry for a final finish on white gold jewelry.
Palladium is currently the most expensive of the four major precious metals - gold, silver, platinum and palladium. It is scarcer than platinum, and is being used in great quantities for catalytic converters in cars.
What is the highest price platinum has ever been? The all-time high platinum price was about $2,270 per troy ounce. It was reached in March of 2008.
Platinum and palladium are similar in appearance, and both are hardwearing white precious metals. Still, platinum is our preferred choice as its greater weight gives it a more luxurious feel, and it is also a much better metal to work with.
Gold: The Traditional Safe Haven
Gold has long been considered a safe haven asset due to its limited supply and historical stability. It's also seen as a hedge against inflation and currency devaluation, which makes it especially appealing during periods of economic uncertainty.
Gold Price Chart (monthly data) As you can see by the chart above, platinum was worth more than gold for the vast majority of the 20th Century. It was not until the global financial crisis of 2008 that gold prices began to overtake platinum prices in terms of overall, now fully fiat US dollar valuations (Post-1971).
While it may not be significant, titanium and platinum do look different. Most platinum jewelry appears on the lighter, whiter side of silver while most titanium jewelry appears darker in color, on the gray side of silver.
Palladium is one of the rarest metals on earth and even more scarce than platinum – 15 times more rare to be precise. If all the platinum in the world fits in your house, then every ounce of palladium can easily squeeze inside your living room.