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jonrms

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 23, 2017
Messages
71
Location
England
Help. I am a bit puzzled. Quite a bit if gold in the CPU on from my old Honda st1100 motorcycle. But it's not accessible and a pain. It's a gel of some sort???? Anyone come across this before. It's very protected.
 

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A lot of car computer boards are covered like that. Throw them in a pile while you study the forum, and look for easier material to work with.
 
That potting compound isn't coming out without a fight. A messy struggle that isn't worth the payout.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
jimdoc said:
A lot of car computer boards are covered like that. Throw them in a pile while you study the forum, and look for easier material to work with.


Can you point me in a direction of where to look roughly. I have been searching and I wouldn't have taken the time or energy to snap multiple photos and ask for help. I will continue to search but give me a category at least to look in please. I plan on using a soldering iron with a mask and goggles to see if it Will melt out. I will try it on a piece that I dug out first in case it turns into a sticky muck pile
 
Jon

The guys are steering you straight here. There's not enough gold in there to warrant the time you spend taking it out. Everybody on this forum has been through exactly the same dilemma you have with this kit. Try to learn from their experience. Alternatively feel free to waste a load of time and ultimately come to the same conclusion. The waste of time is what we are trying to save you. Time that could be better spent elsewhere.
 
The amateur or home refiner has to cherry pick what materials are worth their time and trouble, even larger companies pass on certain materials due to the cost and or time to recover the values.
Much if not most e scrap ends up in the hands of copper refineries where the values are a bonus, some material just can’t be processed by any other means economically.
With the spread of computerized components there are values in many many items from cars to phones but the trick for the amateur is knowing which items are worth their time and effort to recover, many of the guys on the forum have been doing this successfully for years and have been where you are now, they are not trying to put you off the idea of becoming a refiner but pointing out what’s a waste of time and effort.
With low grade boards and scrap just find a good storage area and save it, you can find buyers for it so sell it and use the money to buy better material and look for material that you can successfully process at a profit.
 
Well looks like I might be able to prove it's easier than you all thought. I made a video but am expecting egg on my face if it goes PEAR shape. But if this first method fails I have one more but that is in the video. I am not going to waste my time but and it's a BIG BUT!. If this works I guarantee that others will follow. Watch this space. Then I will let the Chemistry nerds explain. Lol.
Yes I tested this method in something else and it worked but never like this. So you will have to wait until I finish with my experiment. But if these fail I will concede and scrap it
 
jonrms said:
Well looks like I might be able to prove it's easier than you all thought


Just please don`t burn it!

Granted, I am a noob, so maybe other guys could weigh in on this - but could your material be Polyurethane resin of some sort? in wikipedia it is said that Hydrogen cyanide may be produced in the combustion of polyurethanes... how common are Polyurethane resins in electronics?
 
I decided to soak it over night in wd40. Yes that's right I did say wd40. It has worked a bit but not perfect. I removed those screws you seen. However what appeared to be gold is not! :oops: there is also another board under it but the wd40 only managed to get the top surface in a jello state. I can try acetone which is my next idea. I use this for pen moulds so I am interested if it Will work.

First NERD question why did WD40 work?

Second is Acetone ... thoughts?

I am doing this out of principle but not as a viable option. It's s pain in the back side but I don't give up.
 
I had fun. I took everyone's advice but I 2anted to do a video in it as there wasn't one. I did and posted it in images section. It was fun but overall as mentioned above not worth it. I knew that much but I don't give up. I never have in anything I have dine in life so far. I have a broken back and can't do a heck of alot. Ie walking lifting etc. I keep on going and do things at my own pace. I have loads if my old phones that me and my wife just pulled out if the loft. I also found plenty if old contacts for tv's etc that are gold plated. I don't mind that time. I am breaking apart some old watches too. I have over 30 kilos of gold to process now but as yet u am still building up. I have some that I put in bar form just because I wanted to store it in a smaller area. I have ALOT to do. Building my lab is high on that list now. Alot of easy methods. I will post videos and pictures. I do have a helper who is a chemist to ensure that I don't harm myself whilst I do this. I decided to get into this because I can leave it and not rush. Most processes don't take more than 30 minutes if you needing to sit down and monitor it. Anyway I can do all these things in stages.
 
Jon, not giving up is an admirable trait. Just be aware that there are all sorts of toxic nasties in just about any electronic components. While they are relatively safe as they are packaged, as soon as you start any process, you can release them into more dangerous forms.

Consider something as harmless as electrical contacts. They are totally safe as contacts. But many contain cadmium as part of the silver alloy and/or as part of the solder used to hold them on the bus bar. A process as simple as heating them to melt the solder and separate the contacts from the bus bars can release deadly cadmium fumes.

Gold plated brass pins are also harmless. But once you start dissolving them with HCl or vinegar, you create solutions containing ionic copper, a very toxic substance. Copper acetate is a permeator, meaning if you get a drop on your skin, it starts to be absorbed into your body and it can carry other toxic substances with it. Copper chloride is poisonous to almost every form of life.

My point is that it's OK to experiment as long as you study every process you plan to try, understand all possible risks, and do everything you can to minimize them. Hoke's book recommends such experimentation in her getting acquainted exercises, but under controlled conditions. We have lost several good members over the years because of the toxic nature of what we do. We don't want to lose any more.

If you haven't done so already, take a read through the Why Can't I Ask a Simple Question and get a Simple Answer? thread. They are real life experiences of some of our members, some with years of experience under their belts.

Keep gathering scrap. Keep studying. Keep experimenting, but it's best to learn from the mistakes of others rather than repeating them yourself.

Stay safe in everything you do,
Dave
 
FrugalRefiner said:
Keep gathering scrap. Keep studying. Keep experimenting, but it's best to learn from the mistakes of others rather than repeating them yourself

That paragraph is ripe with wisdom.
 
Thank you Dave.

My reply will be much shorter but I do take precautions. Those videos are me shooting the WD40 breakdown of that gel. No heat or anything was applied. Just time and I use WD40 on a regular basis so I didn't fear anything.

As far as collecting I am and will continue to. I am building a fume hood and safe area for dispersing of nox chemicals and also setting up a area for extraction of silver then Cooper. Why waste?

I already have a first aide station set up ( expected as a retired Paramedic)

I am trying to ensure what ever waste I have will be earth friendly. And right now gathering information on chemicals ratio. Ie for poor man's aqua Regia.. how much Sodium Nitrite to HCL. Which filters are best. How much gold should I use in a container? Etc. I am going through all the information to see what is best. How not to waste chemicals and then how to extract others. Ie silver requires copper etc. I am not sure if I will refine the platinum or pladdium or rhodium.. Which some of my items have due to the tempatures required. My furnace only goes so high.

Safety. I love this site! SERIOUS.. I am a preacher for doing things safely. Seen far too many accidents in my career
 
Jon if you have PGMs then if you can do not dissolve them as the salts of all of them are a serious hazard to health, if you are running e scrap then you may well encounter some but always wear gloves and work under a hood and simply cement any PGMs from your solution with copper and store the powder for a later melt and assay, I’m sure you are now becoming aware that much of what we work with and produce can be toxic so read and learn about not just the way to refine but how to do so safely.
 
Nick, thank you again. I do and have understood the RISKS. But I can still pick up more information. I am not ready to start the processing... hence joining first. I have been collecting gold and silver for along time. I now am building the lab. I have bought supply some chemicals only due to reading over and over. I also have safe storages built with vents. The sodium nitrate is this.
 

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