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Here Are The Top Periodic Table Elements Used in Cars

GMB proclaims itself one of largest global manufacturers of OE and aftermarket products. In their spare time, and they seem to have a lot of that, the guys working there are chemists. On Friday, GMB released a list of periodic table elements (you know, that chart shown in school no one seems capable of understanding) most commonly used in the automotive industry.
Periodic table of vehicle elements 1 photo
Photo: gmb.net
Although GMB did not say how they managed to strip down spare parts to their core elements, their exercise, achieved with the help of Spork Marketing, is worth a look. For instance, did you know the vehicle you are driving may contain chlorine?

There are, says GMB, 29 periodic table elements frequently used in car manufacturing. Of them, nine are more widely used than the others.

The most common such element is, of course, aluminum. It can be found in almost any metal part of a car, from wheels to engine blocks. Engine parts also make use of bismuth, which comes in the shape of steel parts. Steel also contains calcium.

An element that gets high attention in modern times, especially when it comes to supercars, is carbon. It can, however, be found in cars for the masses as well in the shape of adornments and body panels. Platinum, a key component in catalytic converters, is used abundantly, in the U.S. more than any other place.

Moldings and trim parts use PVC, which contains the element chlorine. For the electrical components of some cars, manufacturers use gold. Reducing weight is achieved through the wide utilization of magnesium.

With this knowledge, GMB also released a periodic table of its own, color coded so that we, the lesser chemists, may see what element goes where in a car: Assembly, Body/Chassis, Electronics/Electrical System, Emissions, Fluids, Interior, Paint, and Safety.

“While a lot of these parts are made from the same groups of elements, there are some surprises,” said in a statement Sarah Porter, Marketing Manager at GMB North America.

“We thought it would be fun to show how various elements are used by the auto industry in a familiar format."
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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