Mighty Mite II Electrolytic Gold Recovery

Gold Refining Forum

Help Support Gold Refining Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

NobleMetalsRecovery

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 6, 2007
Messages
336
Location
USA
This item is Patent Pending. Anyone heard of this yet? It is on eBay from time to time. You can check it out with this number 220853152779 on eBay, it is an expired listing. The most recent sale was on 9-15-11. A friend of mine has one of them and says that it works. I'm looking for more reports. There is a youtube video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT4g-PHoepw

Please PM me if you have experience with this system.
 
The gentlemans name is Loren.

http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/search.php?keywords=loren&terms=all&author=&sv=0&sc=1&sf=all&sr=posts&sk=t&sd=d&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search
 
Steve,

Of course it works. People have been using it since 1940, since it was first patented. However, the way I read it, the patent was not for gold recovery, but for stripping faulty gold plating off of parts, so they could be replated.

Awhile back, I watched the videos (in 4 parts), carefully, of the Mighty-Mite system and saw nothing new except, maybe, the basket, which was the best design I've seen, so far. I think I found the video links at the bottom of that eBay page you gave. I emailed Loren and asked what was unique about the system that would enable him to get a patent. The only thing unique I could think of was that he may have been the first to add gelatin (which is actually not needed). I gave him a history of the sulfuric stripper, starting with the original patent from 1940. I told him it was mentioned in the Hoke book, discussed in the Gajda book (for gold recovery), and that I started using an improved version of it, that I developed, in 1972 (for both replating parts and gold recovery). I also asked him for the patent# or the patent application#. I never received a reply. I think I must have ticked him off. I see no way he could get a patent, unless it slipped through the cracks. Occasionally, I see patents on things that I was doing many years before the patents were issued. Others have mentioned this, also.

Also, the price he charges is only for the electrodes, I think. You have to provide everything else.

Chris
 
Ok have a question about video he used a tin on the sides that clipped over the dish and a copper or brass basket. The question I wonder is, is the electrolite the same as you would add to a battery?
 
Hi Chris,

Thanks for the detailed info. A "friend" of mine purchased it and is using the "new" system. For some reason, which I don't know, he doesn't want to tell me what the electrolyte is. Anybody got a clue?

Regards, Steve
 
Noble Metals Recovery said:
Hi Chris,

Thanks for the detailed info. A "friend" of mine purchased it and is using the "new" system. For some reason, which I don't know, he doesn't want to tell me what the electrolyte is. Anybody got a clue?

Regards, Steve
Better than a clue. It works on the principle that concentrated sulfuric acid is converted to persulfuric acid in the proximity of the anode. That's what dissolves the gold. As the gold migrates away from the anode (the part being stripped), the solution (persulfuric acid) reverts back to sulfuric acid, which can not hold gold in a dissolved state, so it precipitates as colloidal gold---the black particles that cloud the solution.

It's no secret at all---he uses concentrated sulfuric acid---betrayed by the color. As long as the cell is cold, it won't dissolve base metals. Large systems have been known to be water cooled, so they can run continuously.

I'm surprised that he handles everything with bare hands.

Harold
 
The thing costs $130.00 + Shipping, from the info I got from Loren. For what looks like a couple pieces of stainless steel, joined by a piece of copper wire, seems to be rather expensive. I’m betting that lazersteves cell will work just as well, and with a lot less expense. He only says the electrolyte costs $8.00 per quart. I can copy this letter and email it to you if you like, it's 2 pages.
 
jimmydolittle said:
The thing costs $130.00 + Shipping, from the info I got from Loren. For what looks like a couple pieces of stainless steel, joined by a piece of copper wire, seems to be rather expensive. I’m betting that laisersteves cell will work just as well, and with a lot less expense. He only says the electrolyte costs $8.00 per quart. I can copy this letter and email it to you if you like, it's 2 pages.

I want a copy.
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mighty-Mite-II-Scrap-Gold-Plating-Recovery-Unit-/320767013981?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aaf34345d
I just now found this on eBay. The basket appears to be solid copper, with the sides riveted on.


If it’s difficult we do it immediately, if it’s impossible, then it takes a little longer.
 
Sorry to "bug" in on this topic.....but I have a couple of question:

1)far I know sulphuric acid is "BAD" in low concentration(below 20% eats iron like a charm...)...so beeing so concentrate I think that does no harm(beeing carefull enough to keep the water out).
2)I keep stumbeling on a phisic law(OHM to be exact)....so states that U=RxI (U=voltage,R=rezistence,I=amperage).Voltege on the cell is a constant,amperage on the maximum deppletion peaks(meaning a shortcircuit between the gold foils that are accumulated) so ....where is the R...
About the R....matters the material which the basket is made of,the volume of depleting material,the material of under layer (copper+nickel or kovar).....

Just studdy= my life
 
Johnny 309, I am not sure I understand your question, but maybe this may help, or not, I just hope it does not confuse things for you.

we have a battery or cell, two dissimilar metals in an acidic solution(electrolyte), these metals will have a (electrode) potential (or voltage), depending on metals we use, and since they differ will also give us a cell voltage, as one has a potential to lose electrons from its metal atom (oxidize) and the other metal has a potential to gain electrons to its atom (reduction), now if we hooked a wire and a light bulb to make an external circuit, the electrons would flow through this light circuit, lighting our light bulb, the cell would supply the voltage, the filament and wire (giving a resistance to current flow through the circuit), for the current (amperage) to flow through our external circuit, this depending on values would give us a wattage (heat used).
the cells metals used give us the potential difference (voltage) the spacing and area (or number of) of the plates of metals give us available current (amperage available from the cell, and the electrolyte would give us the cells resistance, say we used sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and water (H2O) in this cell, pure water has a specific gravity of one, but H2SO4 being heavier than water for the same volume of water is much heavier, now if we had a mix of sulfuric and water say 32% we would have a specific gravity somewhere around 1.25, now we will also have metal Ions from our metals in solution so this will also add to the specific gravity somewhat.
Now let’s look at what is happening inside the cell,

(here is something that is confusing the anode and cathode names change if this is a battery or an another type of cell, and when the explanations was written, or by whom just like some of us in the electronics trade argue which way the current flows, positive to negative or negative to positive, (Edison’s theory or hole theory) it is whichever you believe or learned, they are both just theory's neither right or wrong, and as long as you understand and follow one or the other and do not confuse them you can do your job, but reading about them from differing authors or books will use different ones (directions of travel to explain the discussion so sometimes it gets confusing to the reader)

Cell the anode is oxidizing (atoms of metal losing electrons) creating metal ions in solution, which move over towards the cathode here they are reduced (gain back an electron) and become metal again, usually plating to the cathode.(or in the case of the gold cell falling out of solution as sludge) so here how many metal ions are in our electrolyte will determine our cells resistance, if most all ions are reduced and plated to the cathode (or bottom of cell), (here if gold all removed from anode in the gold de-plating cell)(my discussion a dead battery) our cells resistance is low, in a car battery if we hooked it up to a battery charger (by the way would force the circuit backwards our cathode now becomes anode, and reverses what was happening when we were using the cell to light the lamp, moving metals back the other way) the amp gauge needle would show high amps (cell resistance low not many metal ions or acid in solution) and (electrolyte depleted or sulfuric acid as metal sulfate's which also changed specific gravity of the cells electrolyte), as the cell charged all metals as could plates back and electrolyte sulfide goes back into solutions as sulfuric acid) the resistance of the cell raises (which we can notice on the battery charger low amp gauge reading on charged battery ) and specific gravity of cell raises as we go from mostly water to more acid in electrolyte.

So the cells voltage is determined by metals used.
Cells resistance determined by the electrolyte (acid to water and dissolved metal ions in solution).
The current is determined by surface area of cells plates.

In your sulfuric gold cell, now you are forcing a voltage into the cell from an external source (like charging a battery). and if you are using a car battery charger (that puts out a constant voltage about 14.5v for 12v. charger the cells resistance (electrolyte conditions) will determine cells resistance, which will also change the current flow from charger through the cell (as noticed on amperage gauge of charger) now here what type of metals in solutions and if elemental or not would also effect the cells resistance as well as temperature, and if metals were stirred up or settled and if cell was shorted by crystals or not. Also note that when gold depletes from anode the resistance changes because of cell conditions.
Again I hope this is not confusing.
 
Back
Top