Iridium is not exactly a household word, and that’s not really surprising. After all, it was only discovered in 1803. Chemists who were studying platinum dissolved it in a mixture of hydrochloric and nitric acids to create soluble salts, and they often resulted in a small amount of an insoluble and dark residue. A British scientist then discovered that this residue was composed of two previously undiscovered elements, which were osmium and iridium. The latter got its name from Iris, the Greek goddess of the rainbow, because the salts obtained had many different colors.
It’s one of the rarest stable elements in the Earth’s crust, and gold is actually 40 times more abundant. When it is in its pure form, it’s very brittle and virtually impossible to machine. It is also one of the most corrosive metals in the world.
Below is the historical Iridium price per troy oz.
| Year | Price | Price (Inflation Adjusted) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | $168.11 | $304.49 | 0% |
| 1993 | $97.12 | $170.79 | -73% |
| 1994 | $70.13 | $120.20 | -38% |
| 1995 | $64.47 | $107.49 | -9% |
| 1996 | $67.65 | $109.51 | 5% |
| 1997 | $200.70 | $317.57 | 66% |
| 1998 | $446.60 | $695.53 | 55% |
| 1999 | $414.82 | $632.13 | -8% |
| 2000 | $415.00 | $611.61 | 0% |
| 2001 | $413.01 | $592.10 | 0% |
| 2002 | $293.57 | $414.24 | -41% |
| 2003 | $93.07 | $128.37 | -215% |
| 2004 | $186.32 | $250.24 | 50% |
| 2005 | $169.49 | $220.15 | -10% |
| 2006 | $349.65 | $440.08 | 52% |
| 2007 | $446.97 | $547.24 | 22% |
| 2008 | $450.08 | $530.88 | 1% |
| 2009 | $425.39 | $503.77 | -6% |
| 2010 | $642.14 | $748.48 | 34% |
| 2011 | $1,036.16 | $1,170.30 | 38% |
| 2012 | $1,070.29 | $1,183.99 | 3% |
| 2013 | $826.15 | $900.41 | -30% |
| 2014 | $555.61 | $596.01 | -49% |
| 2015 | $543.31 | $582.24 | -2% |
| 2016 | $575.06 | $602.41 | 6% |
| 2017 | $698.07 | $714.82 | 18% |
| 2018 | $970.00 | $970.00 | 28% |
Iridium, chemical element, one of the platinum metals of Groups 8–10 (VIIIb), Periods 5 and 6, of the periodic table. It is very dense and rare and is used in platinum alloys. A precious, silver-white metal, iridium is hard and brittle, but it becomes ductile and can be worked at a white heat. Iridium gets the controls of minecraft while injecting nothing into the client, making it undetected to anti-cheats. Additional services users of iridium will get access to tutorials of iridium, tips on how to avoid screenshares and how to stay undetected. Browse Iridium’s flagship telephony products to find the perfect satellite phone for you. Whichever you choose, all are powered by the reliable and truly global Iridium network.
Price History
The price of iridium is tied to its industrial usage. It is considered one of the rarest metals in the world, and with its comparatively small volume in the market (when compared to other industrial metals like copter and aluminum) has made its price very unstable. Its price fluctuates depending on any changes in the production, demand, speculation, and hoarding of the metal. But in general, unlike gold it’s not used as a hedge against inflation.
In the early 2000s, its price gradually decreased because the supply was too much for the relatively lower demand. But that changed in the early 2010s when demand for this metal suddenly increased. It was due to the increasing popularity of LED screens. The metal become highly valuable as flat screen TVs and tablets became more popular. By 2011, the demand for this metal was for 194,000 ounces and that was 27 times what it was back in 2009. Soon the demand reached 334,000 ounces. The price of iridium broke the $1,000-mark per ounce by 2011.
So in other words, it wasn’t speculation that was sustaining the increase in the price of the metal. It was actual industrial demand that dictated the price instead. Today, many manufacturers of LED screens now use cheaper fluorescent material instead. That’s why currently the price of iridium is about $520 per ounce.
Iridium as Investment
Very rarely do people invest in iridium, as it is considered a minor element. During the early 2010s when the price was heating up, the primary investors who benefited were the ones who had bought stock in the iridium-producing companies. These included Lonmin, Impala Platinum, and Anglo Platinum. Investors can either buy and trade stock in these companies, or pour in money in funds that invest in similar companies.
Purposes Used For
Iridium can be used today in many ways. As an alloy mixed with osmium (“osmiridium”), it was first used in the early 1830s to tip fountain pen nibs. Since 1944, the Parker 51 fountain pen had a nib fitted with a ruthenium and iridium alloy, and today the tip material in fountain pens is still called “iridium” even though other metals such as tungsten has replaced that metal.
It is also used in the LED and data storage technology, as it is used to grow synthetic single crystals. Since 1995, it has also been used in making acetic acid. Because it is so brittle, it is also used in alloys as a hardening agent, so it is used to harden the platinum used in medical probes, pacemakers, and other similar applications.
In the automotive industry, its main use is as a component of the exhausts for direct injection engines. It is also sometimes used in spark plugs. When used as an alloy with ruthenium, it is used in making electrodes for chlorine production.
It is also used in glass production, because the metal is inert when it is in contact with molten glass. It can be found in optical lenses as a coating, as it boosts clarity and reduces glare.
Fun Facts
Here are some iridium trivia that you may find interesting:
- It is so rare that it is only available at 0.001 parts per million.
- Its rarity is thought by some experts as a result of its high density. The metal may have sunk beneath the Earth’s crust while the planet was still in its molten state.
- The metal is more prevalent in meteorites, and today the highest concentrations of the metal are found in impact craters. The largest meteorite to crash in North America is the Willamette Meteorite, and that had 4.7 parts iridium per million.
- Tracking the amount of iridium through geological records have led to the Alvarez Hypothesis, which posited that a massive object from space such as a meteor crashed on Earth, and that caused the extinction of many species 65 million years ago.
The Element Iridium
[Click for Isotope Data]
Atomic Number: 77
Atomic Weight: 192.217
Melting Point: 2719 K (2446°C or 4435°F)
Boiling Point: 4701 K (4428°C or 8002°F)
Density: 22.42 grams per cubic centimeter
Phase at Room Temperature: Solid
Element Classification: Metal
Period Number: 6
Group Number: 9
Group Name: none
What's in a name? From the Latin word for rainbow, iris.
Say what? Iridium is pronounced as i-RID-ee-em.
History and Uses:
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Iridium and osmium were discovered at the same time by the British chemist Smithson Tennant in 1803. Iridium and osmium were identified in the black residue remaining after dissolving platinum ore with aqua regia, a mixture of 25% nitric acid (HNO3) and 75% hydrochloric acid (HCl). Today, iridium is still obtained from platinum ores and as a by-product of mining nickel.
Pure iridium is very brittle and is nearly impossible to machine. It is primarily used as a hardening agent for platinum. Platinum-iridium alloys are used to make crucibles and other high temperature equipment. Iridium is also alloyed with osmium to make the tips of fountain pens and compass bearings.
Iridium is the most corrosive resistant metal known. For this reason, the standard meter bar was created from an alloy of 90% platinum and 10% iridium. This bar was replaced as the definition of the meter in 1960 when the meter was redefined in terms of the orange-red spectral line of krypton-86.
A thin, worldwide layer of iridium exists in a layer of sediment that was put down at the end of the Cretaceous period. Since meteors and asteroids contain a higher percentage of iridium than the earth's crust, this iridium enriched layer is seen as evidence that the earth was struck by a large meteor or asteroid at that time. Dust from the impact would have spread around the globe, depositing the iridium. The dust also would have blocked the sun for a time, resulting in the extinction of many plant and animal species, including the dinosaurs.
Estimated Crustal Abundance: 1×10-3 milligrams per kilogram
Estimated Oceanic Abundance: Not Applicable
Number of Stable Isotopes: 2 (View all isotope data)
Ionization Energy: 9.1 eV
Oxidation States: +4, +3
Iridium Satellite Phone
Electron Shell Configuration: | 1s2 |
2s2 2p6 | |
3s2 3p6 3d10 | |
4s2 4p6 4d10 4f14 | |
5s2 5p6 5d7 | |
6s2 |
Iridium Spark Plugs
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