Platinum as a Thermal Conductivity Standard

The thermal conductivity K of high-purity platinum appears to be a reproducible quantity for temperatures between 75°K and the melting point at 2047°K. This behavior combined with the outstanding chemical and physical properties of platinum suggests that platinum could serve as a useful K standard in this region. From 200° to 2047°K the available data in the literature on K can be represented to within ±2% by K = (0.648+1.87×10−4T) W/cm deg. Some further work in determining K by several different methods, particularly at high temperatures, appears necessary before platinum can be adopted as a standard.