Platinum Metals Review - Volume 52, Issue 4, 2008

Thermal conductivity and thermal expansion for the intermetallic compounds Ir3X (X = Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb or Ta) were measured in the temperature range between 300 and 1100 K. The thermal conductivities of Ir3X are distributed in the range from 41 to 99 W m^–1K^–1at 300 K, while the difference of thermal conductivities becomes less emphasised at higher temperatures. The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) values of Ir3X are insensitive to temperature, and fall around 8 × 10^–6K^–1at 800 K. The Ir3X intermetallic compounds with X = Ti, Zr, Hf, Nb or Ta are suitable for ultra high-temperature structural applications due to their higher thermal conductivities and smaller CTE values.

Tertiary phosphines are a large class of fascinating ligands commonly used in platinum group metal (pgm) coordination chemistry. They play an important role in areas ranging from homogeneous catalysis to selective metal extraction chemistry and to therapeutic applications. In this article, pgm-containing complexes of new functionalised mono-, di- and polytertiary phosphines, derived from straightforward condensation reactions, are reviewed. These phosphines have been used as building blocks in supramolecular chemistry and for constructing novel hexanuclear pgm complexes, as ligands for bridging homo- and heterobimetallic late transition metals, and in the field of precious metal-based catalysis.

The patent literature contains a wealth of detailed information about existing and new uses for the platinum group metals (pgms). While excellent searching tools have existed for many years for identifying patents relating to specific topics, it is only relatively recently that it has been feasible to map the complete archive of patent literature to identify important trends relating to potential new applications. This paper summarises the results of such an exercise for the pgms carried out in early 2008 and shows that one such ‘hot spot’ relates to organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).