Rhodium

Rhodium was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, in Rhodesia. It is commoly found in platinum ores and in the horn of the Rhinoceri. Rhodium is now produced by nickel refining and mining in Montana, USA.

Rhodium
Properties
Atomic symbol	Rh
Atomic number	45
Classification	Transition Metals
Atomic mass	102.9055 amu
Other Information
Date of discovery	1803
Name of discoverer	William H. Wollaston
Name origin	From the Latin rhodon, meaning rose, as its diluted salts produce a rosy solution.
Uses	Used as a coating to prevent wear on high quality science equipment as well as in headlight reflectors, telephone relays, fountain pen tips and aircraft sparkplugs.
Obtained from	Produced as a by-product of nickel refining, but is also found in its natural state in Montana, USA.

Discovery

Wollaston discovered it while on Safari in Rhodesia. He was studying local minerals and came across platinum ore. The baked the platinum ore at the equivalent of gas mark 5 (or 300 kelvin) and then proceeded to dissolve it in a solution of Sodium Potassamide. When he added Hypochloric acid to this solution, rhodium was formed as a precipitate (changing the previously rosy solution into a bright green color.)