As one of the celebrations to commemorate the centenary of the foundation in 1885 of Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K., Mr. Junichiro Tanaka the President of the company resolved to publish a comprehensive reference book entitled “Science of Precious Metals”. To facilitate this some eighty people, each an authority on a particular subject, were invited to prepare papers covering a wide range of topics on the platinum group metals, and also on gold and silver. Designed to develop further the precious metals industry in Japan, the book will provide users and potential users with a most useful source of scientific and technical information, and with a lesser amount of data on the supply and demand for these metals.

The first volume of this three volume publication serves as a preface, and includes contributions from both industry and academia, a pattern that is followed in the other two volumes.

The majority of the papers in Volume II were written by professors at Japanese universities and are largely devoted to fundamental aspects of the physics and chemistry of the precious metals. The text is ably supported by illustrations and by references to the literature.

The fourteen chapters in Volume III cover the very wide spectrum of applications for the precious metals, including of course the vitally important use of the platinum metals. These range from long established applications such as laboratory apparatus, in the glass and glass fibre industries, and as catalysts and electrodes during the manufacture of chemicals. Their use in petroleum refining, petrochemical processing and C₁ chemistry is also considered, as are recent developments relating to automobile emission control, and the growing electronics and pharmaceutical industries.

In conclusion, the demand and supply of the platinum metals are also considered.

Following its launch on 4 December 1985 at the Industry Club of Japan in Tokyo, the book, which is mainly written in Japanese, was distributed without charge to universities, governmental institutes, laboratories, companies and individuals with an active interest in the precious metals. In his introductory paper Mr. Gordon H. Waddell, Chairman of Rustenburg Platinum Holdings, remarked that in an uncertain world the future of the precious metals seems assured. Undoubtedly the publication of this book by Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo will make a most worthwhile contribution to that future.