Net platinum demand in the glass industry grew by over 3,000 per cent in 2010 as new capacity was installed for glass fibre and LCD glass manufacturing. According to “Platinum 2011”, Johnson Matthey’s latest review of the market, net platinum demand rose by 335,000 oz last year, returning close to pre-recession levels.

Platinum and its alloys are used in the linings of vessels that contain, channel, and form molten glass, as well as in self-supporting fabricated parts and in coatings on surfaces such as ceramics. Platinum’s high melting point and resistance to corrosion make it suitable for use in the aggressive environment of molten glass.

Glass manufacturing around the world has been stimulated by high rates of economic growth in developing markets, and a recovery in consumer demand in developed ones. This has driven the installation of new capacity for manufacturing glass fibre for use in construction, and LCD glass for use in a range of consumer electronic devices, including TVs, computer screens, phones and tablet computers.

The glass industry tends to be a cyclic market: a large amount of demand comes from new glass plants, while recycling periodically returns metal from older manufacturing facilities. This happened in 2009 when sell-backs from old marble re-melt glass fibre plants and old cathode ray tube glass manufacturing plants returned platinum from redundant manufacturing lines, offsetting the growth in new demand and accounting for net demand of just 10,000 oz.

Special feature on PGM in Glass Manufacturing in “Platinum 2011”:


http://www.platinum.matthey.com/uploaded_files/PT_2011/pgms_in_glass_manufacturing.pdf  

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