That’s because this metal doesn’t react easily with oxygen under high conditions. Common conditions make it not only a rare metal but also plays an important role as a perfect catalyst to resist oxidative corrosion.
Although produced mainly in South Africa and Russia, rhodium can actually be a byproduct of copper and nickel ore refining with a content of about 0 1%.
This is also one of the hardest metals on par with platinum palladium osmium iridium and ruthenium with a melting point of nearly 2000 degrees Celsius.
Not only that, rhodium can withstand temperature resistant in water and air up to 600 degrees Celsius and insoluble in most acids making them very versatile for use in automobiles aircraft thermocouple electrical contacts and high temperature resistance wires .
Rhodium was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, an English chemist. He extracted this element from a piece of platinum ore obtained in South America. This discovery came to light shortly after researcher Wollaston discovered another platinum group metal, palladium.
Despite its rarity and beauty, statistics from 2019 showed that nearly 90% of rhodium demand came from the autocatalyst sector used in manufacturing. Here rhodium is used to make catalytic converters. This is an unusual use for one of Earth’s rarest metals.
Rhodium has also been used as a symbol of honor or wealth. when other more commonly used precious metals such as silver, gold or platinum are considered insufficient.
In 1979, Guinness Book of World Records gave Paul McCartney a rhodium-plated disc because they considered him the songwriter and artist with the most sold songs of all time. The Guinness Organization also often makes items such as the world’s “most expensive pen” or “most expensive chess board” that contain rhodium.
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