Presently, very little platinum jewelry is manufactured in the United States and therefore, the main usage of platinum is confined to the production of diamond settings. The demand for platinum products has always been high in Japan and its use in the European countries is on the increase, especially for men's fashions. However, in this country, it is used mainly in higher end gold jewelry to add white accents. Because of this limited demand, very little work has been done to optimize the alloy composition and properties. As a result of these factors, platinum articles tend to be fairly heavy and expensive. This paper discusses the alloys and the fabrication technology required for manufacturing hollow jewelry products, such as, balls, beads, bangles and hoop earrings.

Authors: D.P. Agarwal, Greg Raykhtsaum