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Strategies & Market Trends : Commodities - The Coming Bull Market -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: craig crawford who wrote (13)	5/31/2001 2:22:55 AM
From: craig crawford	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1643

Ward's Auto World, May 1, 2001 There's gold in them ‘thar’ catalysts! The crusade to reduce the amount of outlandishly priced platinum group metals (PGMs) in automotive catalysts now is under way, after recent announcements by both General Motors Corp. and Honda Motor Co. Ltd. that the companies have new technology that will drastically cut PGM “loadings” in catalytic converters. But gold, the most famous of precious metals, has been found to have its own unique catalytic properties - and there are a number of exciting possibilities for its use in air purification, says Mike Cortie, head of the physical metallurgy division at Mintek, South Africa's metallurgical research organization. Gold has a much lower melting temperature than PGMs, so it could not be used in catalysts for gasoline engines, but experts reportedly believe it can be used for diesel engines due to their lower exhaust temperatures. It is believed the use of gold for air purification in buildings and aircraft, for instance, could be ready within two years. Mr. Cortie says gold is set to become the “industrial metal of the 21st century.” A gold compound recently proved successful in the treatment of certain cancers, and the outlook for its use in nano-technology is said to be excellent ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gold producers seek catalysts to boost demand for metal By Nicol Degli Innocenti Published: April 5 2001 19:21GMT \| Last Updated: April 5 2001 19:37GMT Gold producers and bullion bugs who have seen the metal's price slide perilously close to $255 an ounce this week may have at least one reason to be cheerful. New research on the metal's catalytic properties shows that gold has interesting industrial prospects, which could increase world consumption by up to 400 tonnes a year within the next decade. The first Catalytic Gold Conference, held in Cape Town, ended on an upbeat note on Thursday, with Christopher Corti, head of international technology development at the World Gold Council, claiming that gold is set to become the "industrial metal of the 21st century". More than 80 per cent of global gold production goes into jewellery, but the metal's image may soon go beyond that of mere ornament. Promotion of the industrial uses of gold is an important part of the WGC's strategy to stimulate demand for the metal. The Cape Town conference, which attracted delegates from 15 countries, was organised by the WGC with AngloGold, the Catalysis Society of South Africa and Mintek, the country's national metallurgical research organisation. "Gold has been found to have unique catalytic properties and there are a number of exciting possibilities for its use in air purification, and in the automotive and chemical industries," says Mike Cortie, head of the physical metallurgy division at Mintek. The research is promising, but the road ahead is long: "Commercial application has still to be proven and tested," he says. The low price of gold - especially compared with platinum or palladium - makes it a very attractive alternative for the industrial market. Gold has a much lower melting point than platinum and cannot be used as a catalyst to reduce carbon monoxide emissions in petrol-driven vehicles. But experts say it is suitable for diesel engines, which run at lower temperatures. This mission to stimulate demand for gold has managed to unite even bitter rivals such as AngloGold and GoldFields, the world's two leading producers. GoldFields announced this week it would become a partner in Project AuTek, a joint venture formed last year between Mintek and AngloGold to pursue research into new industrial uses for gold. "The project is a very exciting and significant step for the future of the gold market," says Chris Thompson, GoldFields chairman and chief executive. "Gold producers in the past have not spent enough time on developing new product applications for gold. We believe there is substantial potential for gold to replace existing products and to create new ones." The entry of GoldFields into the partnership will allow AuTek to expand its research to the use of gold in advanced materials and devices, Mintek said. "In the first year AuTek has focused on research into gold-bearing catalysts," says Mintek's Mr Cortie. "Now we can study its actual and potential applications in the growing field of nano-technology. While advanced devices and components might only use a few hundred milligrammes of gold a piece, their potential market runs to tens of millions of units and could end up being a significant consumer of gold." Catalytic gold could soon be used to recycle air in offices, large buildings and passenger aircraft, and the first prototype for air purification could be ready within two years, according to Mintek. Another boost to gold demand could come from the pharmaceutical industry, Mr Cortie says. Gold injections have long been used to treat the symptoms of arthritis, and the metal is already widely used in pregnancy test kits in the US, but new applications are being explored. A gold compound, for example, has recently proved to be successful in the treatment of testicular and ovarian cancer.