Iridium - Periodic Table of Videos

Up close with some big samples of real Iridium. Our thanks to Johnson Matthey. See all the elements at bit.ly/118elements
Naming Iridium: • Iridium and Osmium Dis...
Gold Vault: • Gold Bullion Vault - P...
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From the School of Chemistry at The University of Nottingham: www.nottingham....
Periodic Videos films are by video journalist Brady Haran: www.bradyharan....
Brady's other channels include:
/ sixtysymbols (Physics and astronomy)
/ computerphile (Computer stuff)
/ numberphile (Numbers and maths)
/ deepskyvideos (Space stuff)
/ nottinghamscience (Science and behind the scenes)
/ foodskey (Food science)
/ backstagescience (Big science facilities)
/ favscientist (Favourite scientists)
/ bibledex (Academic look at the Bible)
/ wordsoftheworld (Modern language and culture)
/ philosophyfile (Philosophy stuff)
/ psyfile (Psychology stuff)

[@thejumperkin]

"For once I can keep Brady in order" I love this guy so much. He's always so playful yet talks so intelligibly and with such enthusiasm and enjoyment.

[@anibrataghosh8978]

I love this professor... I wish I had him in school, every word he speaks has passion for science in it

[@danielprates2208]

His mild happiness with that bar of iridium is contagious, sort of.

[@Bothorius]

You can tell he is really loves elements at 5:26. I don't think the professor ever fanboys this much over anything. I really like how passionate about his work, and how clearly he demonstrates his excitement. That's what pulled me into these videos on the first place.

[@povnw8985]

Teachers like him are becoming harder to find. That's what makes these videos special to me.

[@prapanthebachelorette6803]

@@povnw8985 ❤️🧪

[@daviddunbar5754]

I've just stumbled on this series. A blast from the past as I worked with Martyn as a humble technician at Newcastle University. He really hasn't changed. All the very best sir.

[@prapanthebachelorette6803]

❤️🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪

[@Chrystair]

The hair, the tie, the glasses, the jokes, the tremor. This man is a character!

[@patdohrety2940]

I had an eccentric professor in college who reminded me of him.

[@petercarlson811]

Looks like someone had fun with the zoom function on that camera.

[@littlemanzjordan7267]

Peter Carlson now i can't unsee it

[@petercarlson811]

Littlemanz Jordan I know. Isn't it irritating?

[@unverifiedbiotic]

Lack of experience. Give an avarage person a camcorder and they'll do this all the time, because they want to tell a story with the framing, but don't understand how to do that.

[@qwasd0r]

It's so damn annoying...

[@gagannnnn]

In the start i just thought he was focusing on the iridium written on his tie, but then he just won't stop lol

[@MrChet407]

Professor: That's not Iridium *pulls out long Iridium rod* Professor(Aussie accent): That's Iridium.

[@brianisme6498]

He’s British not Aussie smh

[@cryamistellimek9184]

@@brianisme6498 he’s making a joke you bumbling fool

[@brianisme6498]

@@cryamistellimek9184 well, I didn’t suggest it wasn’t did I?

[@shadesilverwing0]

@@brianisme6498 No, but you did suggest you weren't aware he was making a joke.

[@brianisme6498]

@@shadesilverwing0 when? Where did I say it wasn’t a joke?

[@C134B]

The professor does vodka shots?! I'll go there when i finish my pHd.

[@trymedorsen3178]

Sebastián Manríquez i was searching for this Comment hahaa

[@samuelluria4744]

He's actually a very cool guy.

[@AnArchyRulzz]

Shots? Nah he drinks vodka straight like a Russian. Shots are for college kids and girls.

[@Gr3nadgr3gory]

Dave Hobbs shots are straight vodka, shots go into mixed drinks.

[@povnw8985]

It's hard to imagine him drunk.

[@SebastianHasch]

"this is a metal free zone..." -brings in whole camera equipment 😂 Great video by the way!

[@WingDiamond]

I'd never get in ... "I'm made of Metal ... My circuits gleam" "I Am Iron Man"!

[@darioinfini]

I have been following along the series of elements completely enraptured. The professor is engaging with his knowledge, personal anecdotes, and flairs of coy humor. Am enjoying these very much. Had no idea elements were this fascinating.

[@BigGrease1]

Legend says that when you don't retest the results of your experiment 3 times before writing your report, Professor Poliakoff will come for your kneecaps with his iridium rod.

[@guitarhero2211]

This guy looks like science

[@outsidethepyramid]

This guy *IS* science .

[@TheHonestPeanut]

He smells even sciencier.

[@Broxalax]

He is a scientologist haha

[@haveatyou1]

This comment looks like stolen.

[@BaileyNisse]

@@haveatyou1 yeah, in every single video

[@jtc1185]

Martyn, you are an international treasure sir. I've never met anyone who could spark my interest in learning like you have done, thank you.

[@Durrpadil]

Professor, what you need is an Iridium Crowbar: Gordon Freeman's weapon of choice I'm sure.

[@Tindometari]

Lol now I'm picturing an action movie starring Dr. Polyakoff. :D

[@naiknaik8812]

It would be very heavy so Gordon would have beefy arms.

[@jimi02468]

Fun fact: if a 10 kg dumbbell was made of iridium, it would look like it was just 3.5 kg (assuming that "normal" dumbbells are made of steel of which density is 8 g/cm^3).

[@MegaBoilermaker]

Iridium 192 is also widely used as an isotope for Gamma radiography.

[@chomskysfavefive]

Brady is the perfect audience insert. Fantastic questions and "rock"-solid camerawork too.

[@Galejro]

1:36 Naaaaaahahhhh My man! :D BTW Make Irridium dumbbells and trick professional weightlifters on April fools day XD Yeaahh that's just a 200kilo wight XD

[@tomdavies6256]

Yeah that would be funny! "Hey go lift that 5kg weight." (Actually weighs like 50) "I cant dude" "ahh you weakling" . Hahaha I can imagine it already!!

[@stagdragon3978]

Tommy Davies OH! to add to it you lift an actual 5kg weight, "see, no big deal!" and just leave them with the Iridium one.

[@thatretrocattt]

The shot of science XD

[@V-for-Vendetta01]

That would be expensive

[@bitterlemonboy]

That dumbbell would probably cost millions of dollars.

[@peanuts2105]

700,000 tonnes of earth to be mined to get 3.5kg of Iridium. Staggering, just staggering.

[@bitTorrenter]

According to Johnson Matthey, the Iridium price was $900 oz t on 19/07/13. That bar weighs 3.8 kg and would have been worth at least $109,953.

[@joeblack4436]

For the most part it's not economic to mine Iridium on it's own. More typically it is a byproduct of Copper and Nickel (amongst other) mining.

[@flymasterA]

Joe Black , That's what I was thinking. A by-product would be a freebie unless more processing is necessary. I'd like another video.

[@joeblack4436]

@@flymasterA I think it's just useful enough for buyers to be willing to carry the cost and probably some profit.

[@flymasterA]

Joe Black , Like the tip on a plug, my interested is sparked to find properties and novel uses for it.

[@charlesearle8414]

Iridium is also a common tipping material for fountain pens. Most pens with nibs made of gold or palladium are tipped with iridium to avoid wear.

[@PiercingSight]

Well, sort of. It's rarely actual iridium. If they use any similar metals and alloys, they like to call it iridium anyway, even if there isn't a trace of it. Something I find highly annoying.

[@BradSchmor]

For anyone curious.. as of October, 2021: Iridium has a spot price, per troy ounce (31.1 g). So this 3.8 kg (122.2 troy oz) bar is worth, approximately: - 4900 USD/oz = $600,000 - 3560 GBP/oz = 435000 GBP - 4233 EUR = 517300 EUR

[@psswamykal1042]

I have one metal bar in my custody. I diceide to sell.?

[@buoy9665]

​@@psswamykal1042 we don't believe you

[@Silentspeaker3]

So, if it has such a high melting point, what kind of substance is the crucible made of in which iridium is melted?

[@buoy9665]

Unobtainium.

[@munjee2]

Silentspeaker3 osmium I guess

[@whatbizarreactisthecaninep791]

tantalum hafnium carbide crucibles.

[@johnf817]

@@whatbizarreactisthecaninep791 idiot.

[@johnf817]

An electric arc furnace

[@PiercingSight]

4:53 - I love how he's holding the iridium directly in front of the Ir box on his tie.

[@CoalCrackerCummins]

Wish the History Channel or Discovery Channel would produce a real show like this

[@621pw]

When he held the grains for the camera, the Iridium symbol on the tie was visible through the canister; not by accident I'm sure! Great videos!

[@DuderofDudeness]

"might make quite a good vodka glass, actually" someone went hard in college

[@Snyper1188]

That is truly an astonishing amount of iridium in one place, let alone one piece! Thanks for making this video, as this will probably be the most iridium ever viewed by the masses, in one place, in the world.

[@ianedmonds9191]

I have a question. Why is it the science faculty of the University of Nottingham is so active on KZbin with some really amazing content but you don't really see any other similarly focussed technical universities doing the same thing? I did my computer science degree at DIT->Abertay. It was a great technical college and then for computing at least a great university. They should be doing the exact same sort of thing as you guys. I had some amazing lecturers that should be doing this sort of thing. I'm thankful you guys are doing this but I guess I wish others were following your example. Thanks. Luv and Peace.

[@inquizative44]

He has a scientific hair do. If there was a picture of a scientist in the dictionary, his picture should be there.

[@ChoppingtonOtter]

your absolutely right! 😁

[@somefool6409]

What about his absolutely right?

[@inquizative44]

Just Multiply You have to find more important things to be annoyed by....lol!

[@inquizative44]

Just Multiply Dude, it was a joke. Something to smile about, he looks like the quintessential professor. Get it? R u ok?

[@jonhohensee3258]

you're

[@KingPeaceus]

So what you're saying is... Jet fuel can't melt iridium beams?

[@theq4602]

+Donald Neal jet fuel burns at 4000 degrees F. Steel melts at 2500F

[@U014B]

But can laser beams melt iridium bars?

[@peanuts2105]

+David Vermillion yes, but steel loses half of its strength at 550°c

[@theq4602]

peanuts2105 I know right? The whole myth of "jet fuel can't melt steel" is bull. Why do they need extremely expensive nickle based alloys for jet engine turbines if jet fuel can't melt steel? I know they compress the air for more performance therefor higher temperature but science should be looked at first before idiots spout conspiracies.

[@JohnyAngelo]

+David Vermillion Its not about melting, but about the fact that steel loses half of its strength at about 600C. Thats why like in buildings, you often have some sort of fire protection on steel pillars, because in event of fire, they would heat up, bend and collapse.

[@duckdodger2464]

i love welding iridium. it is by far the craziest thing i have ever welded. To crank a welder up to 350 amps floor the pedal and not blow a hole through 1/8 inch thick of metal is outstanding.

[@johannsebastianbach7846]

This guy is the personification of science.

[@Jesoterica_Medium]

In addition to this obviously wonderful, and informative video, let's just talk about his phenomenal periodic table tie for a minute...this guy is the best!

[@LaGuerre19]

Can't mention iridium without mentioning the K-T boundary. Thanks for another great video!

[@fydstar]

Love these videos, been binging them this week or so! That Iridium bar is worth £667,000 as of 28th June 2021!!

[@psswamykal1042]

How can check original or duplicate, iridum metal

[@Asurael]

My dream has always been to have an iridium sword, and since iridium is mostly found on meteorite crash sites, you could call it a meteor sword.

[@Theduckwebcomics]

Though you get more iron in meteorites 😅 And steel is actually harder than Iridium

[@ferretyluv]

You would need to spend millions.

[@MonaichFother]

6:06 Serves the dinosaurs right for all standing in the same place.

[@behrensf84]

So if we could mine asteroids and iridium became cheap like steel, what uses would we have for it?

[@sherriecaskie3111]

Turbines for jet engines?

[@S.R.Crnt.]

These videos will never stop being interesting.

[@Rsenior1981]

I hop you don't mind, but I would like to make a request. The "artistic" camera movement is quite distracting (not to mention nausea inducing). Would it be possible to hold the camera still?

[@Jotto999]

Part of the charm of this channel is just how intensely stereotypical of a scientist Professor Poliakoff is. Brilliance, a massive pool of knowledge, and white Einstein-esque hair - it gives a sense of both respectability and cuteness at once.

[@jeffw1267]

I understand that iridium has a very high melting point (about 4400 degrees F). But why not make crucibles out of rhenium instead? It's much cheaper, it's essentially inert, and has a melting point of a whopping 5700 degrees F.

[@OsirusHandle]

It and iridiums price flux significantly by their demand and at one point in 2008 rhenium was significantly more expensive. Unsure about chemical properties that would favour one over the other though.

[@joethebassplayer]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge... I am not an "academic mind" but not for lack of my desire. I want toreturn to school when I can and study history or chemistry... I appreciate your time and sharing it with "us"... Thank You again - Joe

[@kingofcobwebs]

You guys make chemistry even more awesome. Thanks.

[@GH-oi2jf]

It was actually Walter Alvarez, a geologist and son of the physicist, who noted that a layer found world-wide was associated with the end of dinosaur fossils and that it contained iridium. His father recognized that a metorite could explain the presence of iridium and the extinction of dinosaurs.

[@Tindometari]

I'm inferring that Dr. Poliakoff likes his vodka. :)

[@ke6gwf]

I think the camera guy likes his vodka too, judging by the drunk camera work lol

[@komreed]

I cant believe there are people that don't subscribe to this channel, never would be able to see this apart from this youtube channel. awesome

[@AluminumHaste]

You could also use a Tunsgten crucible, which has a melting point of over 3000C and it's really a lot cheaper.

[@LucasRodmo]

AluminumHaste Sometimes is a question of durability too. The tungsten in a light bulb doesn't last much

[@sebastiandiazmarulanda3919]

iridium is much more inert

[@AluminumHaste]

Lucas Rodmo we're not talking about a thin filament, but a crucible made from it with thick sides.

[@dphorgan]

@@LucasRodmo What's that got to do with anything? Obviously a crucible is going to be a lot thicker and a bulb filament.......... People trying to act smart lol

[@LucasRodmo]

@@dphorgan Actually not. Search online and you will understand why this matter. Tungsten is brittle in high temperature, this is why NASA never used it in their heat proof exterior components. They are the scientists, if they are using iridium in this case, is because is the more appropriate.

[@c.d.w.3944]

I love how basically every comment is about how the professor is the complete embodiment of science.

[@masterchief5603]

What if I forget a element in periodic table!.. Nooooo- Oh my tie, *You saved my life!*

[@electoralex9726]

Live long and prosper, dear Professor! We all love you!

[@jacobryan365]

2:37 wow this metal is so dense that every ounce weighs 800 pounds

[@regality7764]

what?

[@davidpham4709]

800 pounds as in the currency

[@ieatgarbage8771]

And it's getting heavier

[@bottleofspringwater1]

or about 1040 dollars

[@gumball1216]

It was a joke guys. I'm pretty sure he knew.

[@frankligas2249]

Thanks for the video. But you missed a very important feature of iridium, its electrostatic charge potential. You even got it on film. Look at the seen were the tiny pieces were sticking to the sides of the bottle. Iridium helps to speed new worlds as an aggregator in planetary nebulas.

[@yaykruser]

i realized that too, wonder what caused them to fload like that?

[@laxpors]

There sure is a lot of Iridium on pandora!

[@ptroinks]

I thought that was Unobtainium...

[@uristmcdwarfington8863]

wrong pandora, op is talking about the pandora from borderlands (videogame series)

[@ptroinks]

Ah, ok.

[@kaffohrt9858]

It's Eridium

[@wormball]

no, it's 55 Pandora

[@jfpereira5834]

Yes. In USA too. When Uranium decays, it transforms in such noble metals like Rhodium, Ruthenium..and other no noble, Molybdenum. Palladium is also obtainable but harder to get from the decay product

[@loeloeler]

I feel smart watching this

[@Worsthoofd]

The bar in the beginning of the video is a significant portion of the yearly world iridium production (a few tonnes).

[@ConspiracistLizardMan]

Now I need an iridium sword for the zombie apocalypse.

[@dsandoval9396]

Ya damn right!

[@sockosophie3132]

Bad Idea cause of its heavy weight.

[@rud]

Nice shot. Iridium in front and the symbol and number on the tie.

[@lakse123]

I bought a piece of Iridium because it's neato wow. Tiny shiny blob, $200US and weirdly heavy for its puny size. It is incredibly hard and inert and resists everything I do to it. From what I'm told, it'll look exactly the same 1,000 years from now. Freaky stuff.

[@dphorgan]

Ah ya.... Same with gold and platinum..

[@jupiter_ios]

@@dphorgan and osmium

[@hybridoug]

I love your videos! Thank you so much for teaching people about these elements.

[@farstar31]

5:35 My favorite line from Professor Poliakoff so far!!

[@filg9]

I have chilled vodka waiting anytime he’s in town. Love this guy!

[@johnhanley9946]

Iridium was once used to make the tips of fountain pen nibs.

[@clarkelliott5389]

A number of them are coated with osmium as it is even less subject to wear.

[@ferretyluv]

I swear I learned that from periodic videos. The professor says it in one video, I think.

[@typograf62]

The KT-boundary is represented in the "fiskeler" (fish clay) at Stevns in Denmark. And very visible. Visit it some day.

[@BlackAlpha1]

Awesome tie!

[@I86282]

Only a small fraction of all life that perished due to the KT boundary Asteroid. Was from the actual impact. Most of the life that died from the asteroid was from global catastrophe that followed. Not the impact itself. But I think the real question is why do asteroids have so much Iridium. Did the Earth's Crust originally also have as much Iridium. Before being recycled in the Earth's mantle. And due to its density would it have sank to the middle. Also is it this material along with mini others of course. That allow the production of the electromagnetic field emanating from our planet. I love these questions. Excellent video.

[@190055joe]

t still intrigues me how they were able to identify the different elements and then put them on the periodic table according to their atomic mass.

[@JetFalcon710]

There were other factors (reactivity etc.), but yeah

[@Negs42]

It's not arranged according to atomic mass, but atomic number. It's easy with X ray crystallography.

[@GewelReal]

@@JetFalcon710 nazi

[@louistournas120]

You should sneak some aqua regia in, dissolve the iridium in the acid and you can bypass any metal detector. I'm assuming iridium reacts with aqua regia. I don't know much about the chemistry of iridium.

[@becton98]

What do you melt iridium in?

[@undefinablereasoning]

Andrew Lee I haven't been able to find a crucible made out of that material.. The only crucible I've been able to find thus far that could probably safely handle Iridium is Magnesia Stabilized Zirconium Oxide (ZrO2) Zirconia. It has a maximum working temperature of about 2500 Celcius and a melting point at over 2700 Celcius

[@lachlanallen341]

Andrew Lee *shakes fist* Use metric/SI units or DIE!!! : P

[@undefinablereasoning]

zZDaGermanPhilZz Hi, are you sure the stuff can be molded into a crucible.. Again I have not been able to find a crucible made out of that material. I am not questioning the material's melting point.

[@zZDaGermanPhilZz]

undefinablereasoning I'd imagine so yes but I have no solid proof of course...at least it can function as a caoting for different metals to make them more heat resistant :P

[@krappa]

becton98 graphite crucible

[@LATIFAHMOHDNOR-zy1mq]

Page 25 This hypothesis was advanced in 1980 by the US physicist Luis Walter Alvarez (1911-88) and his geologist son Walter Jr. based on the unusually high concentration of the element iridium in a thin layer of clay deposited at the end of the Cretaceous (see iridium anomaly).

[@LATIFAHMOHDNOR-zy1mq]

Page 358 K-T boundary See Alvarez event.

[@theartificialsociety3373]

So what is crucible from which the iridium was made? There must be an ultimate melting point solid.

[@matthewgranstrom1579]

Ceramic crucibles don't melt.

[@theartificialsociety3373]

+Matthew Granstrom so why do you need an iridium crucible vs. ceramic?

[@Enny_Gima]

For certain crystal-growing applications [as said in the video]. There are some experiments which require iridium crucibles for this purpose, as ceramic will not work for growing some crystals.

[@theartificialsociety3373]

+Enny Gima yes I imagine there are special uses for it. Probably the jet engines or rockets would not be nearly as reliable without these very exotic special metals.

[@ColonelSanders17]

you can use tungsten, that has the highest melting point of all pure metals.

[@larvitardratini5965]

May I please have the iridium vodka glass when you guys hit 1M subscribers?

[@prasanthalpha]

Is that a periodic table tie ?

[@dond668]

I love your videos. It's common to hear how the spark plug makes the fuel/air mixture explode. This would be detonation and it would destroy your engine. The fuel/ air mixture actually only burns when you engine is running normally. Also, if the spark plug is limited to firing thousands to hundred of thousand of times and you average an engine speed of say 2000 RPM, then you will be replacing your spark plugs after about an hour and a half. I know chemist have exceptional math skills, so once again I'm quite entertained by this.

[@ChargedTTq]

I'm pretty sure the spark plug tip wears more due to the plasma arc than the combustion.

[@MrGoatflakes]

I am constantly amazed that something several orders of magnitude rarer than gold and tricky to isolate and purify and melt is as cheap or cheaper than gold.

[@ghostman9028]

"This man is cool as a polar bears toe nails!!!"....

[@fearalice]

When he said the price "800 pounds an ounce" the america in me laughed.

[@Tindometari]

Now, that's heavy metal ... "I AM IRIDIUM MAN!"

[@AlexiLaiho227]

not once did sir martin mention my favorite application of iridium: fountain pens! 😃 in very nice fountain pens, they'll have a gold alloy to make a flexible nib, but then it will be tipped with a tiny ~2mm iridium blob so it's got an extremely hard and durable point! most pens nowadays just use some type of steel or a hard carbide or something, but the classy ones will still be made with 14-21k gold and tipped with iridium!

[@GMCLabs]

I named my daughter Iridium. Iridium Crystal Carone!

[@jfpereira5834]

exactly. Also, Platinum alloys are commonly composed by a Ir-Pt matrix but this is quite expensive. palladium, copper and even osmium can replace Ir but the quality falls down. Pure Platinum, altough being stronger than Gold, remains too soft so is dopped with noble metals to enhace is hardness (this is necesary to withstand years and years of wear and scratches) sorry for my English XD

[@DJPsykhe]

vodka glass hee hee xD I love the professor!

[@dereksawle]

2:10 an explanation in how it's able to be welded when having such an extremely high melting point would have been interesting.

[@GewelReal]

they just heat it up enough that it melts. simple

[@superstrudel]

nice. Stop moving camera, please.

[@JohnnyWednesday]

"Uridium" is far superior - best side-scroller on the platform!

[@old-bitprogaming4857]

Imagine hitting somebody with that rod, that would hurt alot

[@Spycyzygy]

pretty much anything denser than foam will hurt tho

[@Tindometari]

"I AM IRIIDIIUUUM MAN!"

[@jtroopa]

It’s also theorized that while it’s rare above the crust of the planet, it may be more plentiful in the mantle or the core of the earth. When the earth was young and a roiling mess of molten rock, it’s theorized that heavier elements like osmium and iridium sank inside the earth since it’s more dense.

[@camerongray7767]

My mom saw me watching this and thought that his hair was a joke

[@greggles1987]

love your videos. As a chem eng student, its nice to have a constant reminder that chemistry still kicks ass!

[@jaimegomez9658]

iridium killed t-rex, Damm you space!

[@daniescott3000]

If the T-REX was still around, we'd never be here.

[@jonhohensee3258]

Got proof?

[@HobzyMcRuse]

@@jonhohensee3258 a thin layer of iridium rich rock formed when the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs slammed into Earth, 65 million years ago. It's called the KT boundary.

[@jonhohensee3258]

@@HobzyMcRuse - That's evidence, not proof.

[@HobzyMcRuse]

@@jonhohensee3258 It's fact. The KT layer of iridium can only be formed from a massive meteorite impact. The age also coincides with the age of the massive chicxulub crater. Maybe the dinos were in decline but this was the final nail in the coffin. No dino fossils can be found above this layer. You won't find better scientific proof.

[@bjfrey4870]

I spent 25 years at JM but in the US. The density of the alloys took some getting used to. After a while The metal in the shop was just that, metal.

[@hadrock83]

Now to the junker to get me some spark plugs :). Im gonna be rich!

[@punishedexistence]

That bar is the biggest piece of iridium I've *ever* seen, and the Prof is just holding it...Professor, I am very envious of you at this point, more so than when you held the gold bars. Everyone has seen gold once in their life, but no one I know has ever gotten to hold pure iridium. Great video, and I'm just kidding, I'm happy for the Prof, as I know he is too.

[@kiryukazuma8089]

Imagine a sword made of this metal, or a work hammer

[@Outland9000]

+Ian “Worldbreaker” DeNault Too heavy.

[@MrDeathsmbrace]

+W3rking W0nders It's called "Mjolnir", I know you wrote that two months ago but I had to. :p

[@LucasRodmo]

Ian DeNault Too heavy. Steel is fairly light weight and resistant enough for the job.

[@somedudeinva]

FYI - Iridium as a catalyst features in the new movie "The Martian". He uses it to catalyze the decomposition of hydrazine (available to him as a rocket fuel). Mind you, he has it as lumps, not a gauze, which it normally would be, but nevertheless....

[@michalchik]

NOOOO!!!! HE just said "Its density makes it very hard and rigid". Hardness and Density are independent properties.

[@CastelDawn]

he never said that they weren't independent. don't blame your poor comprehension skills on him.

[@michalchik]

OK, you can not comprehend that stating that A leads to B logically requires that when A is present B be present. Lead is considerably denser than steal but steel is harder than lead. Mercury is even denser than lead and it is a liquid.

[@terrymadill]

michalchik I'm sure the prof misspoke.

[@michalchik]

Terry Madill You are probably right. Its just that I try to teach how these propertie are seperable to my students so i get weirded out when authority figured screw it up.

[@joshuanorris5860]

Youll get over it

[@IlkinSantak]

Iridium is also used on fountain pen tips. It makes nibs durable.