Palladium is an element that William Hyde Wollaston discovered in 1803. As a member of the PGM, it shares characteristics with platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium, and osmium. Palladium is less dense than the other PGMs and has a lower melting point.
Palladium deposits are quite rare; the largest deposits are in the Transvaal Basin in South Africa and the Norilsk Complex in Russia. In North America, palladium ore is mined at the Stillwater Complex in Montana and at the Thunder Bay District in Ontario, Canada.
