— Capable of dissolving gold and platinum to help make 99.999% pure metals, aqua regia deserves its royal status. In the 8th century AD, an alchemist by the name of Jabir ibn Al-Hayyan prepared the first recorded batch of aqua regia, a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric acid in a 1:3 ratio. ... The primary use of aqua regia is for the production ...