Rhodium And It’s Many Uses
Posted in Uncategorized on July 3rd, 2010 by admin – Be the first to comment
Popular with women for ages, jewelry has always come in a wide variety of styles and has been available in many different metals. The most popular over the years has been gold and silver. However, whether it is new jewelry, or antique pieces, they always seem to hold a special place in a woman‘s heart. They are also something women use to pass along to the younger generation.
For many years, silver has been a staple in jewelry, as popular as gold but without the high price. Many people don’t realize that silver colored jewelry is not always silver though. There are many other metals used to make jewelry that looks like silver. The silvery jewelry could be made from metals such as platinum, rhodium and even white gold.
Rhodium is often used to plate silver, making the metal stronger and less prone to tarnish. Rhodium earrings are many times silver ones that are plated in the rhodium. Because silver easily tarnishes if it is not cared for and polished properly, the rhodium plate prevents this from happening.
Accessory companies have used rhodium in some of their high end pieces like hobo handbags. Because the metal has a high resistance to corrosion, it is perfect for metal pieces on handbags and other accessories. Typically the metal pieces will be coated in rhodium plate to keep their brilliance and strength.
This metal has had many other uses as well. It is used as an electrical contact because it has a low electrical resistance. Plated rhodium is often used in optical equipment and as a filter in mammography systems. It is also used in making high quality writing pens. Its most popular use however is in automobiles as a catalytic converter.
Rhodium is unusual because not only is it mined and extracted from other ores found like gold, platinum and silver, it is also possible to extract rhodium from used nuclear fuel. This metal is found in the periodic table under transition metals and is symbolized by Rh.
While many people prefer the look of silver, it isn’t as widely used as you may believe. Silver toned jewelry however, is very popular, mainly because it looks great with just about everything. Gold can look plain and boring, but striking silver toned pieces seem to add a brilliance to any outfit, whether it is girls shirts and jeans or a cute little black dress and heels.
