Produces palladium-like alloys

Researchers in Japan have created an alloy with properties similar to palladium, a precious metal used in many high-tech products.

This is seen as a breakthrough in the field of ' modern alchemy ', according to Yomiuri Shimbun.

Professor Hiroshi Kitagawa and research group at Kyoto University said that they used nanotechnology to combine rhodium and silver, which are not mixed together to create a new compound.

This alloy has similar properties to palladium, which is used in catalytic converters that reduce emissions in cars as well as computers, cell phones, flat screen televisions and dental instruments.

Like other white metals, such as silver and platinum, palladium is expensive, with limited distribution in South Africa and Russia.

Paladium also has applications in the production of fuel cells to generate clean, renewable energy.

In order to make the new alloy, researchers used nanotechnology to spray rhodium and silver and gradually mix them with hot alcohol. These two metals are stably mixed at the atomic level.

Professor Kitagawa hopes to create more alloys with nanotechnology.