Hey Guys,
I have poked around a bit on the forums, but this is my first post. I really appreciate all of the knowledge in this forum, I can tell there are a lot of awesome people here.
My question(s) is rather broad, but here it goes: I have a friend who runs a non-profit which collects donated (free) e-waste from small--->large institutions. All of it is donated. As of now, they process the e-waste (take computers apart using cheap labor) and re-sell it. My friend came to me asking about gold recovery from the e-waste because I am a chemist and he thought I would have some knowledge. Well, I didn't, so I did some quick research and what I found is that it could be worthwhile. If I could process 5-10 lbs/day of cut fingers, that would yield roughly 5-20g of gold/day (assuming cut fingers yield 1-2g of gold/lb). I figure I could do this, if it was my full time job.
I realize that the cost of chemicals will weigh into the feasibility of this venture, as well as disposal. If I were doing 10 lb batches in 5 gallon buckets should I use the HCl+H2O2 or HCl+CuCl+O2 method? Of course I will be re-using the etching solutions, which would be a better choice for re-use? After the initial foil extraction, I plan on dissolving in Nitric Acid and precipitating with SMB, filtering, then melting in crucible.
I will start by doing 1LB batches in my backyard to get the process down. I've been a chemist for 8 years so after reading some of the tutorials and threads I don't feel it will be too difficult, but I understand there is a learning curve none-the-less. It will take time to learn the process and I have the means to do this. After getting the process down, the non-profit said they will rent out a lab space for me to move into with proper ventilation, permits, etc...
I don't have a lot of options right now for work, I have been out of work since August due to cut backs at my company. The job market here is not so great, I have been looking for the last 3 months to no avail. I feel like this could be a good opportunity for me, but also realize it might be a dead end/pipe dream.
Pros:
Source material is free and plentiful
All equipment and reagents are paid for
I will get 25% of final weight of gold
Cons:
I have no experience in this field
They currently sell the ram boards uncut, if profit from gold extraction doesn't exceed current method of selling ram boards, my job will be deleted.
Any input is much appreciated. Thanks and have a wonderful day!
-ersurfer-
I have poked around a bit on the forums, but this is my first post. I really appreciate all of the knowledge in this forum, I can tell there are a lot of awesome people here.
My question(s) is rather broad, but here it goes: I have a friend who runs a non-profit which collects donated (free) e-waste from small--->large institutions. All of it is donated. As of now, they process the e-waste (take computers apart using cheap labor) and re-sell it. My friend came to me asking about gold recovery from the e-waste because I am a chemist and he thought I would have some knowledge. Well, I didn't, so I did some quick research and what I found is that it could be worthwhile. If I could process 5-10 lbs/day of cut fingers, that would yield roughly 5-20g of gold/day (assuming cut fingers yield 1-2g of gold/lb). I figure I could do this, if it was my full time job.
I realize that the cost of chemicals will weigh into the feasibility of this venture, as well as disposal. If I were doing 10 lb batches in 5 gallon buckets should I use the HCl+H2O2 or HCl+CuCl+O2 method? Of course I will be re-using the etching solutions, which would be a better choice for re-use? After the initial foil extraction, I plan on dissolving in Nitric Acid and precipitating with SMB, filtering, then melting in crucible.
I will start by doing 1LB batches in my backyard to get the process down. I've been a chemist for 8 years so after reading some of the tutorials and threads I don't feel it will be too difficult, but I understand there is a learning curve none-the-less. It will take time to learn the process and I have the means to do this. After getting the process down, the non-profit said they will rent out a lab space for me to move into with proper ventilation, permits, etc...
I don't have a lot of options right now for work, I have been out of work since August due to cut backs at my company. The job market here is not so great, I have been looking for the last 3 months to no avail. I feel like this could be a good opportunity for me, but also realize it might be a dead end/pipe dream.
Pros:
Source material is free and plentiful
All equipment and reagents are paid for
I will get 25% of final weight of gold
Cons:
I have no experience in this field
They currently sell the ram boards uncut, if profit from gold extraction doesn't exceed current method of selling ram boards, my job will be deleted.
Any input is much appreciated. Thanks and have a wonderful day!
-ersurfer-