Platinum’s Curative and Flexible Benefits
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Specialty silicones are a growing business, and platinum’s catalytic properties are key to their formulation in a process known as ‘curing.’
Silicones are man-made materials which come from the chemical element silicon, a major component of sand. They come in a number of forms from fluids, greases and oils to gels, resins and rubbers.
Highly versatile, silicones are said to combine the qualities of metal with the diversity of plastics. Able to lubricate, seal, bond, release, coat and insulate, they are also extremely robust, and can withstand temperature extremes and repel water.
Silicone rubber is a highly-adhesive liquid or gel. In order to convert it to a solid, it must be toughened through a process called curing, which bonds or ‘cross-links’ the underlying chemical structures.
Platinum is frequently used as a catalyst in the curing process, especially in the manufacture of speciality silicones, where performance characteristics such as high purity, tear-resistance, transparency and low toxicity are important.
Platinum-cured silicones are also known to be useful in processes that require detailed customization or extreme hardness.
Uses of platinum-cured silicone
Platinum-cured specialty silicone
is used to make bakeware
The versatility of platinum-cured, speciality silicones means that they can be found in a wide range of products, including automotive parts, kitchenware, electronics, clothing, and footwear, and personal care products such as lipsticks and shampoos.
Due to their high bio-compatibility, they also have extensive medical applications and are used to make various types of tubing as well as implants and wound-healing dressings, where they have the benefit of sticking to dry skin but not the wound itself.
One major application is in release liners, commonly used for coating the backing paper of sticky labels, allowing the label to be peeled away easily without splitting.
Release liners also allow an item to be resealed or removed and stuck elsewhere, without losing stickiness. Specialty silicones feature in low-tack pressure-sensitive adhesives used to make sticky Post-it® notes.
A lesser-known use of specialty silicone is in the film industry, where it is molded and cast to make special-effect prosthetics, like the ones seen in the Harry Potter films.
Demand likely to rise
Platinum’s unique combination of catalytic and physical properties see it used across many industrial processes.
Industrial applications like silicone production account for around one-fifth of total annual platinum demand.
This industrial demand segment, excluding platinum’s use in automotive applications, is forecast to rise by 4% in 2019*.
As one of the rarest metals in the world, platinum is also sought after across other segments such as jewelry, and it is increasingly being viewed as an investment asset.
*World Platinum Investment Council Platinum Quarterly Q3 2018
Posted with permission of World Platinum Investment Council. As of Dec. 13, 2018.
The forecasts and forward-looking statements regarding continual growth in the platinum industry are not guarantees of future performance. Past Performance does not guarantee future performance or results.
Who is Jeff Klearman in our research team? Jeff has over 20 years experience working as a trader, structurer, marketer and researcher. Most recently, Jeff was the Chief Investment Officer for Rich Investment Services, a company which created, listed and managed ETFs. Prior to Rich Investment Services, Jeff headed the New York Commodities Structuring desk at Deutsche Bank AG. From 2004 to 2007, he headed the marketing and structuring effort for rates based structured products at BNP Paribas in New York. He worked at AIG Financial Products from 1994 to 2004 trading rates-based volatility products as well as marketing and structuring. Jeff received his MBA in Finance from NYU Stern School of Business and his Bachelors of Science in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University.
