- [Narrator] A bottle
of water in an airport? A pint of beer in a central London bar? A barrel of crude oil? Believe it or not, none of
these liquids even scrape our top 10 most expensive
liquids in the world. Due to their scarcity, how
difficult they are to create, and their usefulness to the
human race, some liquids can cost up to millions of dollars when you examine them
at a cost per gallon. Let's dive into some
expensive liquids now. - [Cartoon] Amazing. - Number 10. Scintillation Cocktail. I'm not talking about the
brightly colored liquids Tom Cruise concocted in
Cocktails and Dreams. This is far more serious stuff. And one of our most expensive liquids, with a value of $210 per gallon. Scintillation cocktail is a
liquid used to help measure the activity of radioactive material. Radioactive material is
dissolved or suspended in the scintillation cocktail, and placed on a liquid scintillation
counting machine. Which allows you to see the alpha and beta
particles being emitted. It was used to analyze
soil samples after nuclear disasters like Chernobyl and Fukushima to see if it was safe to come back. The cocktail is made from a large number of different chemicals. And each batch is checked
individually against a huge number of large-worded criteria, including chemiluminescence,
photoluminescence, and counting efficiency. That's why it's so expensive. Number nine. Nail Polish. You probably don't think nail
polish is that expensive. But that's because you only
buy in tiny quantities. If you wanted to buy a gallon
of Cover Girl nail polish, it would cost you $900. Most nail polishes are
made from nitrocellulose, mixed with a solvent, like
butyl acetate or ethyl acetate. That's why it has that distinctive smell. The high-end nail polish
brands contain chemicals that add texture and color to the polish. Plasticizers hold the pigments together, and there are polymers
that make the polish last longer on the nail. You may even find sparkles in there. According to a survey in
2012, more than two million gallons of nail polish were
sold in the U.S. that year. Also, more than 33% of women in the U.S. own more than 25 bottles of nail polish. That's more than one for every finger and toe on their body. Number 8. Human Blood. The average human has one
and a half gallons of blood running through their veins and arteries. Millions of people donate
their blood every day, so why is human blood on our
list of expensive liquids? Well, it's because of
what they do to your blood after you've donated it. When you donate your
blood at the blood bank, you give what's called whole blood. However, these days, most
blood banks prefer to split whole blood into two separate parts. These are usually red
blood cells and plasma. It costs a lot of money
to process the whole blood and separate it, so that is
why blood is so valuable. About $1500 per gallon. In addition, blood is
valuable because so much of it is used to keep people alive
in emergency situations. A single car accident
emergency could require more than 12 gallons of blood. That's why donors are always needed and warmly welcomed at blood banks. Number 7. Printer Ink and Liquid Paper. If you own a printer,
you probably realize this every time you have to
replace the ink cartridge. I know I do. But this black substance we use every day is one of the most expensive
liquids in the world. It's worth $2700 per gallon. The ink is actually how printer
companies make their money. They sell you their printer at a loss knowing that they'll make
this loss back, and more, as you buy replacement ink throughout the life of the printer. That's why you can only buy ink branded by your printer maker. Obviously, black is the most used color. Even when you're printing colors, part of it is mixed with black ink. It's made primarily of
carbon, with a cocktail of other ingredients such
as lubricants that stop it getting stuck in the printer. And chemicals that make it dry quickly. The printer companies
plead that manufacturing ink cartridges is a long
and complicated process, which justifies the price. Do you believe them? Or are they just on a
massive money spinner? Now, correct me if I'm
wrong, but the opposite of printer ink is correction fluid. Known in the U.S. as liquid paper. It was invented in 1956 by a typist called Bette Nesmith
Graham, in her kitchen. In 1979, she sold the Liquid
Paper brand to Gillette for nearly $50 million. It's made of a variety of chemicals, but the white pigment is titanium dioxide. At $200 per gallon, it doesn't
come close to the price of printer ink but still makes our list. Number 6. Mercury. You probably remember this
from chemistry at school. Mercury is the only metal that is a liquid when at room temperature. While it's poisonous to
humans, it can affect the kidneys, liver, and
nervous system if humans come into contact with
it, it's very useful in many other ways. We use it to make
thermometers and barometers. We use it to make batteries
and to produce chemicals such as chlorine. Mercury is used to make electric switches and light bulbs. And when combined with other chemicals, it can be used in medical treatments. Also, it's used to
extract gold from rocks. So it's prized in the jewelry industry. Mercury is found in the earth's crust, and extracted by heating
up ground mercury ore to 580 degrees Celsius. As you can imagine, that's
a pretty expensive process. Which is why mercury is worth
around $3400 per gallon. Number 5. Insulin. Staying with the medical
world, we move on to insulin. Worth $9400 a gallon. Insulin is a hormone,
made in the pancreas, that helps your blood absorb
glucose from your food, and convert it into energy. It also regulates the
body's blood sugar level and helps the body break down fat. Useful stuff. Unfortunately, if you're a diabetic, your body isn't producing
as much insulin as it needs. So you have to get it from elsewhere. Around 29 million people in
the U.S.A. alone have diabetes. So that's a lot of insulin
that they need to find. The reason why it's so expensive is mainly down to the fact
that the market is captive. You need to buy insulin, or you die. Also, there are only three
authorized manufacturers of insulin in the U.S., with
regulations limiting the flow of generic, unbranded
insulin into the market. Over the last 10 years, the
price of insulin has tripled. Who knows what it will
cost in 10 years time. Number 4. Horseshoe Crab Blood. Spare a thought for the horseshoe crab. He's happily swimming around
the shallow ocean bed, as he always does. When it's time to mate,
he pops on to the shore. Suddenly, he's kidnapped,
and his blood is harvested, along with the blood of his friends, before he is set free again. What must be going through his mind? It's not his fault he has
a special type of blood. It doesn't contain hemoglobin. Instead, oxygen is
contained in hemocyanin. It contains traces of copper, which means it's blue rather than red. The horseshoe crab's blood
contains amoebocytes, which can be used in the medical industry for detecting toxic bacteria. It can be used to make vaccines. It's also worth $60,000 per gallon, because of the lengths you need to go to get any of it!. Yes, it must be tough
being a horseshoe crab. Number 3. GHB & LSD. These are the two most expensive liquids you probably don't want
to come into contact with. 4-hydroxybutanoic acid,
or GHB, is manufactured as a treatment for
narcolepsy, and an anesthetic. However, when it's mixed
with alcohol, it can seriously affect your
decision-making ability, and your memory. As a result, GHB became
known as the date rape drug. Used by criminals to
spike peoples' drinks. As it's clear, it's impossible to detect. GHB costs around $2600 per gallon. Elsewhere, lysergic acid
diethylamide, or LSD, came to prominence in the 1960s when it was popularized by the Beatles. It's a drug known to cause hallucinations and affect your awareness. As it's manufactured
illegally from crystals, it's extremely expensive. Plus, a single dose of LSD is
between 40 and 500 micrograms, around 1/10th the size of a grain of sand, dissolved into paper. If you were to buy a gallon of it, and I don't recommend you do, it would cost around $123,000. Number 2. Perfumes. If you've ever passed
time in the Sky Store at the airport, you'll
know that perfume can be pretty expensive stuff. The first and probably the
most famous designer perfume was Chanel No. 5, concocted
by French designer Coco Chanel and chemist Ernest Beaux. Chanel No. 5 was launched in 1922, and has been a best-seller ever since. It's made from very rare flower
petals, and essence of root. In a bottle of Chanel No.
5, you'll find bergamot, rose, heart of jasmine, and much more. These ingredients are difficult to find which is what makes No. 5 so expensive, at $26,000 per gallon. It is the most expensive perfume
that it readily available. Modern perfumes are easier to manufacture, using more readily available ingredients. For example, Calvin
Klein's Eternity for Men comes in at a modest $3840 per gallon. Chanel No. 5 is not the world's most expensive perfume, though. That honor belongs to
Clive Christian No. 1, whose woody and oriental fragrance costs around $344,000 per gallon. Number 1. Venom. Most people would say being
bitten by a venomous creature isn't much fun, and they'd be right. However, certain types of
venom are incredibly useful and absurdly valuable as a result. Take the King Cobra, for example. Its venom is one of the
deadliest liquids on earth. One simple bite results in
afflictions such as vertigo and blurred vision, quickly
followed by paralysis, and falling into a coma. The King Cobra's venom can
kill a fully grown elephant. It uses its venom to kill
other snakes and eat them, yet you can also use King
Cobra venom to make medicines such as those to break down blood clots, treat Parkinson's Disease,
and breast cancer. It can also be used to
make anti-wrinkle cream and an antidote to snake venom. This is because it contains
a protein called ohanin, which is an extremely powerful painkiller, 20 times more powerful than morphine. A gallon of King Cobra
venom costs around $153,000. That's nothing compared to
scorpion venom, however. Venom is only a scorpion's
backup plan in the wild. They usually use their strong, sharp claws to kill their prey,
only resorting to using their deadly venom if they really need it. Like the King Cobra venom,
scorpion venom is extremely useful in the medical arena. Its properties are amazing for treating autoimmune disorders, such as
inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis, multiple sclerosis,
and even some cancers. Before I tell you the
price, imagine how difficult it must be to harvest scorpion venom. I mean, would you like
to be the one that tells a scorpion you want his venom? It's a terrifically hard
job, and that's why the price tag for a gallon of
scorpion venom is $39 million. Can you think of any more
liquids that should be on our list? Let me know in the comments
section down below. Also, if you enjoyed this video, make sure to leave it
a like, and subscribe. Thanks for watching.
