Platinum Metals Review - Volume 56, Issue 1, 2012

Platinum group metals (pgms) are increasingly used in a wide variety of important environmentally-related technologies (for example, catalytic converters), most of which are expected to grow in demand as the world develops. Over the past decade, the global mining industry has embraced the need to incorporate sustainable development into projects and governance, resulting in a major surge in the use of annual sustainability reporting to demonstrate such performance. The majority of global pgms production is in South Africa, and this paper assesses and analyses the sustainability reporting by the pgms sector. The approach to sustainability reporting is discussed, including an assessment of the extent and detail of reporting by pgms companies, as well as examining the data reported and its relationship to key production aspects such as ore grade and project scale. By analysing trends in water and energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, especially in terms of per unit pgms production, critical issues such as life cycle costs can be ascertained. Whilst sustainability includes social, economic and environmental aspects, this paper focuses on environmental aspects only. Overall, the pgms sector certainly appears to be a global leader in the breadth and depth of sustainability reporting, with the continuing evolution providing a valuable basis to understand the major issues facing the industry and allow strategic planning for the future.

The high technical recyclability of platinum group metals means that over 95% recovery can be achieved once pgm-containing scrap reaches a state-of-the-art refining facility. Technical challenges exist, but the main barriers to recycling pgms lie in ensuring the collection of scrap and in the capacity and technical capabilities of recycling chains around the world. Economic and legislative drivers are also significant. The “seven conditions” for effective recycling and their impact within Europe are discussed in this article; industrial applications are found to lead the way in terms of recycling rates while automotive and particularly electronic areas are currently some way behind. New business models are recommended, to enable precious metal-containing waste to be seen as a valuable resource and ensure the sustainability and security of pgms supply for the future.

The physical properties and some application performance parameters of a platinum-palladium-rhodium-cerium alloy (Pt-4Pd-3.5Rh-0.1Ce) (wt%) are reported. This alloy possesses finer grain size, higher recrystallisation temperature and better mechanical properties, including tensile strength, lasting strength and creep resistance, than traditional Pt-10Rh and Pt-4Pd-3.5Rh catalytic alloys. Catalytic gauzes made of the Pt-4Pd-3.5Rh-0.1Ce alloy also show a higher conversion rate of ammonia to oxides of nitrogen, lower Pt loss rate, improved resistance to corrosion, adhesion and poisoning, and longer service lifetime for nitric acid production than gauzes made of the traditional alloys.