Top 10 Most Expensive Materials In The World

Mixi September 04, 2021 | 09:25

If you think that diamond or gold is the most valuable substance on earth, then you're totally wrong. Check out right below the top 10 most expensive materials in the world right below!

Illustrated picture. Photo: Mixi's

The most valuable materials on earth tend to be expensive because of their rarity or because of the difficulty in producing them. Over time, the worth of expensive substances regularly changes as the availability of rare materials increases, or the desire for them decreases.

Currently, the list of the most expensive materials on earth is dominated by rare earth elements such as platinum, precious gems like diamond, and advanced materials that are dangerous and hard to produce. All of these substances share a common thread of being high in demand and low in supply.

Another factor that makes these materials expensive is that some of the most expensive materials in the world are used to manufacture high-demand products. Jewelry, engines, and even dental fillings can be made with these expensive materials, making these materials crucial to many industries around the world.

The List of 10 Most Expensive Materials In The World

1. Antimatter — $62.5 trillion per gram

2. Endohedral Fullerenes - $160 Million per gram

3. Californium - $25-27 million per gram

4. Diamond - $55,000 per gram

5. Tritium - $30,000 per gram

6. Taaffeite Stone - $20,000 per gram

7. Soliris - $13,880 per gram

8. Grandidierite - Poorer quality around $10,000 per gram

9. Painite - $9,000 to $300,000 per gram

10. Plutonium - $6,000 per gram

Which Are The Most Expensive Materials In The World?

1. Antimatter — $62.5 trillion per gram

Photo: medium

Any guesses as to what the most expensive material on Earth is? At an unbelievable $62.5 trillion per gram, it’s antimatter. Antimatter is the stuff that sci-fi is made of, but it’s actually very real. Antimatter particles are pretty much identical to their counterpart, which is simply called ‘matter’, but they carry the opposite charge and spin. And if the two happen to meet they essentially annihilate one another. In fact, it would only take a gram of antimatter to produce an explosion the size of a nuclear bomb, but thankfully scientists have only been able to produce around 20 nanograms so far. That would only create enough energy to boil water for a cup of tea, which is much less scary. Even if you could afford antimatter, you can’t really buy it. If you somehow managed to talk a lab into selling it to you, it would cost millions per atom and would be very, very difficult to transport home. But, you might actually already have some at home. Bananas produce antimatter. Granted, they produce it in incredibly small amounts, but still – it’s kinda cool to think you have antimatter in your fruit bowl, huh?

2. Endohedral Fullerenes - $160 Million per gram

Photo: - Wikipedia

Endohedral Fullerenes are normal fullerenes with extra atoms, ions or clusters within inner spheres. The very first lanthanum complex was created in 1985. It is, essentially, a cage of carbon atoms with a nitrogen atom trapped inside. It could have applications for highly accurate atomic clocks.

Currently, two varieties exist, endohedral metallofullerenes and non-metal doped fullerenes.

3. Californium - $25-27 million per gram

Photo: VietTimes

Scientists create californium by bombarding curium with alpha particles. This reaction creates the radioactive chemical element with an atomic number of 98. There are currently ten known isotopes known to exist.

It can help treat certain forms of cancer, detecting gold and silver in ores as well as residual oil within nearly depleted reservoirs. It can only be created by man on Earth but is speculated to be created in supernovae. No wonder its worth so much money!

4. Diamond - $55,000 per gram

Photo: Jewelry Magazine

As anyone who likes to buy jewelry will tell you, the price of diamonds varies widely depending on their quality. 2-3 carats of average quality diamonds, which is 0.4-0.6 grams, tend to cost between $18,000 and $21,000. But if you refuse to settle for anything but the very best, prepare to spend upwards of $100,000 for the same sized gem. The most expensive diamond ever found is the Koh-i-Noor diamond. At 105.6 carats it is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world. The discovery of the diamond isn’t documented, but it’s thought to have been mined in India in the 1300s. It’s changed hands many times since then, but it’s now part of the British Crown Jewels collection. How much is it worth, I hear you thinking? Well, it’s so incredible that nobody has put an estimate on it, making it officially priceless.

5. Tritium - $30,000 per gram

Photo: Pinterest

Tritium is a radioactive substance that sells for an incredible $30,000 per gram. It was discovered back in 1934 and can be used for self-powered lighting such as the ones you might find in watches, map lights, and navigational compasses. It’s also useful for nuclear weapons because it enhances the efficiency and yield of fission bombs. Trace amounts of tritium naturally occur on Earth when cosmic rays interact with our atmosphere. But, most of the tritium that exists is made in nuclear reactors or with nuclear fission. The last report from the only facility in the US to create tritium was released way back in 1996, and at that point, only 225 kilograms had been produced. No wonder it’s so expensive.

6. Taaffeite Stone - $20,000 per gram

Photo: Rare Gem Collection

Taaffeite is an incredibly rare gemstone that has only recently become desirable by collectors. It has color ranges from red to purple and there are thought to be less than ten red ones in existence. The main source for these gems is in Tanzania.

Apparently, so rare is this gemstone that all of the discovered ones would fill half a cup.

7. Soliris - $13,880 per gram

Photo: FiercePharma

At around $13,880 per gram, Soliris is the most expensive drug in the world. It is used to treat an extremely rare but life-threatening disease called atypical Haemolytic Uremic syndrome, or aHUS. This horrible disease attacks red blood cells and is very difficult to treat without Soliris. There’s just one problem, though. A single year of treatment will set you back around $450,000. There was actually another drug that stole Soliris’ crown as the most expensive drug on Earth back in 2015. Glybera was only ever approved for use in Europe, and a single year’s supply costs an incredible $1.2 million. Despite its potential to make drug companies a lot of money, glybera was discontinued in 2017 because the disease it’s used to treat is so rare that hardly any patients actually needed it.

8. Grandidierite - Poorer quality around $10,000 per gram

Photo: Truly Experiences

Next, grandidierite is a very very rare mineral and gemstone. If you are interested, it is a Mg-Al borosilicate that can be found in metamorphic and plutonic rocks.

It was first discovered in 1902 in the Southern part of Madagascar by Frenc explorer Alfred Grandidier. He found it whilst studying the natural history of Madagascar.

9. Painite - $9,000 to $300,000 per gram

Photo: IJC Trang Sức Đá Quý

Quoted prices range from $9,000 to $300,000 with 9K being the most commonly quoted value. Painite is known to be the "hardest" to locate of all the world's rarest minerals. It was first discovered in Burma in 1950 by the British Gem Dealer Arthur C. D. Pain.

There have been recent discoveries in the Mogok Area of Myanmar which might yield more of these beautiful stones in the future. Regardless of their price, they are in high demand.

10. Plutonium - $6,000 per gram

Photo: Twitter

If you’ve ever fancied buying some plutonium, then you had better get saving up because it’s $6,000 per gram. Plutonium is a radioactive metal that comes from the nuclear decay of uranium, but sometimes it can also be found naturally. Its uses include nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons, but it’s also used to power satellites and space crafts that need a long-lasting energy supply. Plutonium was actually used in the cores of the first atomic bombs, including the devastating bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan in 1945. If you do decide to spend your money on plutonium, be extremely careful. Radioactive materials are obviously super dangerous and plutonium can accumulate in your bones which doesn’t sound fun at all. You’ll probably struggle to get your hands on any, though. Plutonium is a controlled substance and even if you did manage to buy some, transporting and storing it would be very difficult to do safely.

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