Platinum is a rare precious metal, that doesn’t corrode in oxygen.
It occurs in its native state in nature and was used in burial goods by South Americans about 2000 years ago.
Platinum is useful in catalytic convertors, along with palladium.
It is used to treat testicular cancer and will be useful in hydrogen fuel cells, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 59 of Elemental.
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Professor Allan Blackman is at Auckland University of Technology.