The most expensive materials in the world

What can a fabulously expensive thing be made of? The answer to this question can be found in our today's top ten, where is the most expensive materials in the world .

All participants of the Top-10 are distinguished by their low prevalence on the Earth and unique properties. In addition, some materials are obtained exclusively in the laboratory as a result of complex, costly manipulations.

10. Gold( $ 56 per gram).

Gold on the Earth is really small, its content in the earth's crust is 0.5-5 μg / kg. For all of its existence, mankind has managed to extract about 161 thousand tons of noble metal. If all this gold is alloyed together, you can get a cube with an edge of about 20 meters.

9. Rhodium( $ 58 per gram).

Noble metal was discovered in 1803 during the work with native platinum. Every year in the world, less than 30 tons of this material are mined, which contributes to its high cost. There are metal deposits in Russia, South Africa, Canada and Colombia.

8. Platinum( $ 60 per gram).

Ancient Indian civilizations have been using platinum since time immemorial. But Europeans got acquainted with this metal only in the middle of the XVI century. More than 90% of the world's platinum reserves are concentrated in South Africa, Russia, the US, Zimbabwe and China.

7. The rhino horn( $ 110 per gram).

In a rhinoceros horn - this is not a bone, but very tightly fused bristles. In Chinese medicine, the horn is credited with miraculous properties and the ability to heal any ailments. The belief of a man in the extraordinary possibilities of a horn cost lives to hundreds of thousands of rhinoceroses and more than once put a face on the brink of extinction.

6. Plutonium( $ 4000 per gram).

The fragile radioactive silvery-white metal is used in the production of nuclear weapons, fuel and as a source of energy for spacecraft. Plutonium is obtained from enriched and natural uranium. According to various estimates, the world's plutonium reserves are about 1200 tons.

5. Peynit( $ 9000 per gram).

Its name was given to a rare mineral in honor of the discoverer-the mineralist Arthur Payne. Until 2005, there were only 25 known peynite crystals worldwide. However, later deposits were discovered in Burma, but the explored reserves are also small.

4. Taaffeite( $ 20,000 per gram or $ 4000 per carat).

A very rare and expensive mineral discovered in 1945 by Count Taaffi. Precious lilac stone is a million times more rare than diamonds. This material is used exclusively in jewelry.

3. Brilliant( $ 55,000 per gram).

Cut allows you to maximize the natural shine of an outwardly unremarkable diamond, turning it into an incredibly valuable diamond. Estimate the cost of a diamond in the "4 C" system: clarity, color, carat, cut.

2. California( $ 27 million for a gram).

The most expensive metal in the world, a radioactive chemical element was artificially obtained in 1950 at the University of California, Berkeley. The process of obtaining california is incredibly expensive. But the unique properties of the element make it possible to use it in neutron activation analysis, in complex experiments on the study of nuclear fission, and in radiation therapy of tumors.

1. Antimatter( $ 25 million per gram).

To assess the applied value of the world's most expensive material is still difficult, but scientists unequivocally believe that mankind simply has to learn how to "extract" antimatter, forcing it to work for its own good. True, it was possible to "catch" scientists until a maximum of 309 antiprotons, which were kept only 15 minutes.