Enhancing the Resilience of Platinum Group Metal Supply Chains: Mine to (Re)use

Platinum group metals (PGMs) are critical elements that play a vital role in sustainable energy transition technologies such as catalysts, hydrogen production and use, and electronics. Securing a resilient PGM supply chain would support the current industrial, societal, and economic infrastructure. The end-to-end PGM supply chain comprises four stages: mining, processing, use, and end-of-life management (including recycling). Growing demand and limited supply pose threats to the PGM supply chain, stemming from shifts related to evolving green technology, limited resource availability, and various disruptions. These supply chain challenges require solutions that consider both engineering and supply chain perspectives. This study summarizes the risks and potential solutions by blending those perspectives and offers research directions to engineers (developing recycling technologies, finding alternative sources, and achieving PGM substitution) and supply chain experts (increasing supply chain transparency, buffering against geopolitical change, and realizing environmental and social sustainability) to increase the resilience of PGM supply chains.