about Osmium » Fields of application

Many applications of osmium take advantage of its high abrasion resistance. Alloys containing osmium has been used in the production of phonograph needles and fountain pen tips. The most notable industrial use of osmium occurred in the early twentieth century, when German company Osram used the element in the production of lightbulb filaments. The name of the company, which is still in use today, even derives from Osmium; “Os” for Osmium, and “ram” from wolfram, the German word for tungsten.

Medical applications are mainly limited to alloys with very low levels of osmium and to the compound osmium tetroxide. Exact numbers on the amount of osmium being used today in the medical sector are unavailable, but it can be estimated that these numbers do not exceed a few grams worldwide. Small quantities of osmium are also used each year by universities conducting research on the metal. This research includes studies on osmium’s electroconductivity and heat transmission at temperatures near absolute zero. These studies only consume a few grams per annum.

There is simply too little osmium available to use osmium and osmium alloys in manufacturing on an industrial scale.

Osmium’s increasing prices in the wake of its growing popularity as a tangible investment asset also decrease the feasibility of the metal’s use in industrial application. More than half of the osmium extracted per year is subsequently crystallized.  Given the high production cost of crystallizing osmium using the method required for the resulting pieces to be certified and 3D imaged, it is unlikely that crystalline osmium would be recycled or broken down to be used in the development of other compounds.

In summary, most of the osmium around the world is used in the tangible asset and jewelry sectors. The prominence of osmium in these sectors has risen rapidly since 2016, leading to the metal having found its place in the world market. It is the last precious metal to have been launched on an international market and is attracting the attention of those who have benefitted from the price increases of previous precious metals. The highest possible purity of osmium is attained through crystallization, a process that also renders the metal nontoxic and safe to handle. More information on crystalline osmium and its applications is available from the Osmium Institute.