In this paper, the kinetics of the platinum(IV) chloride complex ions reduction reaction was studied. It was shown that the mechanism exhibits autocatalytic character. The presence of metallic platinum in the system significantly increases the reaction rate. The influence of the initial concentration of precursor, reductant, ionic strength, initial concentration of the chloride ions as well as the temperature on the process rate was investigated. The activation energy was determined and is equal to 93.57 kJ/mol. Moreover, the obtained metallic phase was analyzed, and it was observed that it has a micrometric size.

Nanoparticles are very fascinating area of science not only due to their unique properties but also possibility of producing new more complex materials, which may find an application in modern chemistry, engineering and medicine. In process of nanoparticles formation very important aspect is a rate of individual stage i.e. reduction, nucleation and autocatalytic growth, because this knowledge allows for proper materials design, morphology manipulation, stability. The last one aspect can be realized using proper electrostatic, steric and electrosteric stabilization. However until now nobody reports and measures kinetic rates of all stages during process of particles formation in the presence of steric stabilizers. Thus, the main contribution of this paper is determination of individual rate constants for nanoparticles formation in the presence of steric stabilizers and their comparison to the system without stabilizer. For this purpose, an aqueous solution of Au(III) and Pt(IV) ions were mixed with steric stabilizers like PVA and PVP, and reduced using L-ascorbic acid as a mild and sodium borohydride as a strong reductant. As a results stable nanoparticles were formed and process of their formation was registered spectrophotometrically. From obtained kinetic curves the values of observed rate constants for reduction metal ions, slow nucleation and fast autocatalytic growth were determined using Watzky-Finke model. It was found that the addition of polymer affects the rate of the individual stages. The addition of steric stabilizers to gold ions reduced with L-ascorbic acid causes that the process of nucleation and autocatalytic growth slows down and the value of observed rate constants for nucleation changes from 3.79·10–3 (without polymer) to 7.15·10–5s–1 (with PVA) and for growth changes from 1.15·103 (without polymer) to 0.48·102s–1M–1 (with PVA). However, the rate of the reduction reaction of Au(III) ions is practically unchanged. In case of using strong reductant the addition of polymer effects on the shape of kinetic curve for reduction of Au(III) and it suggests that mechanism is changed. In case of Pt(IV) ions reduction with L-ascorbic acid, the process speeds up a little when PVA was added. Determined values of observed rate constants for nucleation and growth platinum nanoparticles decrease twice comparing to the system without polymer. The reduction of Pt(IV) ions with sodium borohydride accelerates when PVP was added and slows down when PVA was used. Moreover, the size of obtained colloidal gold and platinum was also analysed using DLS method. Obtained results (rate constants) may be useful in the process of nanomaterials synthesis, in particular in microflow.

The increasing demand for noble metals boosts their price. In order to meet the increasing demand for elements, a number of technologies are being developed to recover elements already present in the environment.Traffic-related metal pollution is a serious worldwide concern. Roadside soils are constantly subjected to the deposition of metals released by tailpipe gases, vehicle parts, and road infrastructure components. These metals,especially platinum group elements from catalytic converters, accumulating in the soil pose a risk both for agricultural and residential areas. Phytomining is suggested as a novel technology to obtain platinum group metals from plants grown on the contaminated soil, rock, or on mine wastes. Interest in this method is growing as interest in the recovery of rare metals is also increasing. Based on the research of many authors, the sources and amounts of noble metals that accumulate in soil along communication routes have been presented. The paper presents also plants that can be used for phytomining.

Cultivation-based assays represent the gold standard for the assessment of virus infectivity; however, they are time-consuming and not suitable for every virus type. Pre-treatment with platinum (Pt) compounds followed by real-time PCR has been shown to discriminate between infectious and non-infectious RNA viruses. This study examined the effect of Pt and palladium (Pd) compounds on enveloped DNA viruses, paying attention to two significant pathogens of livestock – bovine herpesvirus-1 (BoHV-1) and African swine fever virus (ASFV). Native or heat-treated BoHV-1 suspension was incubated with the spectrum of Pt/Pd compounds. Bis(benzonitrile)palladium(II) dichloride (BB-PdCl ₂) and dichloro(1,5-cyclooctadiene) palladium(II) (PdCl ₂-COD) produced the highest differences found between native and heat- -treated viruses. Optimized pre-treatment conditions (1 mM of Pd compound, 15 min, 4°C) were applied on both virus genera and the heat inactivation profiles were assessed. A significant decrease in the detected quantity of BoHV-1 DNA and ASFV DNA after heat-treatment (60°C and 95°C) and consequent incubation with Pd compounds was observed. BB-PdCl ₂ and PdCl ₂-COD could help to distinguish between infectious and non-infectious enveloped DNA viruses such as BoHV-1 or ASFV.