Platinum on Alumina

See more Aluminum products. Aluminum (or Aluminium) (atomic symbol: Al, atomic number: 13) is a Block P, Group 13, Period 3 element with an atomic weight of 26.9815386. It is the third most abundant element in the earth's crust and the most abundant metallic element. Aluminum's name is derived from alumina, the mineral from which Sir Humphrey Davy attempted to refine it from in 1812. Aluminum was first predicted by Antoine Lavoisier 1787 and first isolated by Hans Christian Øersted in 1825. Aluminum is a silvery gray metal that possesses many desirable characteristics. It is light, nonmagnetic and non-sparking. It stands second among metals in the scale of malleability, and sixth in ductility. It is extensively used in many industrial applications where a strong, light, easily constructed material is needed. Although it has only 60% of the electrical conductivity of copper, it is used in electrical transmission lines because of its light weight. Pure aluminum is soft and lacks strength, but alloyed with small amounts of copper, magnesium, silicon, manganese, or other elements, it imparts a variety of useful properties.

See more Platinum products. Platinum (atomic symbol: Pt, atomic number: 78) is a Block D, Group 10, Period 6 element with an atomic weight of 195.084. The number of electrons in each of platinum's shells is [2, 8, 18, 32, 17, 1] and its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d⁹ 6s¹. The platinum atom has a radius of 139 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 175 pm. Platinum was discovered and first isolated by Antonio de Ulloa in 1735. It is one of the rarest elements in the earth's crust, occurring at a concentration of only 0.005 ppm. Platinum is found uncombined as a free element and alloyed with iridium as platiniridium. In its elemental form, platinum has a grayish white appearance. It is highly resistant to corrosion: the metal does not oxidize in air at any temperature. It is generally non-reactive, even at high temperatures. The origin of the name "platinum" comes from the Spanish word platina, meaning silver.