Platinum

Platinum is a very heavy, soft,  malleable and ductile, silvery-white metal.  (For more information about phosphorus, click here.)  The sample below is a small piece of platinum wire that has been imbedded into a glass rod for use in flame tests.

Many metal cations emit characteristic colors when heated.  A small sample of the material to be tested (usually in an aqueous solution) is placed on a platinum wire, which is then held in a Bunsen burner flame; the color of the flame indicates the presence of certain metal cations.  Platinum is especially good for this because it is unreactive, and does not produce a color in the flame which will mask the presence of other metals.

Sodium (yellow)	Sodium (yellow)
Potassium (purple)	Potassium (purple)
Calcium (starts off bright yellow ...)	Calcium (... and finishes as a brick red color)
Strontium (red)	Strontium (red)
Barium (green)	Barium (green)