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Watcher said:
Hi all, I have a general question for you all about the use of magnets.
I've just about hit 1 week of the AP process with my scrap watches and bracelets.
Today I noticed that the scrap is starting to dissolve, makes me happy šŸ˜‰
At this point would a magnet be a good idea to fish out magnetic pieces that have given up their precious metals?
Thanks
Steve
Click to expand...
If you use a perforated bucket that sits in the AP solution bucket, you can wash the material free of the released gold foils by simply raising the perforated bucket out of the solution.
Tweezers work great to get all material out that has given up its precious metals, and to inspect if they are clean.
A spray bottle to rinse the excess AP and foils off into a wash bucket helps. Once that's full of wash water, it can become the first rinse bucket, or go to waste treatment.
 
I have the experience that magnetic material will cement out most, if not all of the copper in solution, effectively making a ferric chloride leach which works basically the same way as the copper chloride regenerative reaction with oxygen.
I would do the magnetic separation first and treat that fraction with plain old HCl. This will speed things up as far as copper consumption in the AP, imo.
 
With watches, the cases can be way to thick to process in AP. I advice to process anything more solid than 2mm in a copper sulfate cell or concentrated sulfuric stripping cell.
Do you have thin sheet metal bracelet links, made from bent sheet metal, or solid metal links and cases?
 
Martijn said:
With watches, the cases can be way to thick to process in AP. I advice to process anything more solid than 2mm in a copper sulfate cell or concentrated sulfuric stripping cell.
Do you have thin sheet metal bracelet links, made from bent sheet metal, or solid metal links and cases?
Click to expand...
I manually separate the bracelets and process just the rolled gold tops. With the cases etc, I'll use a side cutter and normally cut a watch case into four segments.
 
Martijn said:
I have the experience that magnetic material will cement out most, if not all of the copper in solution, effectively making a ferric chloride leach which works basically the same way as the copper chloride regenerative reaction with oxygen.
I would do the magnetic separation first and treat that fraction with plain old HCl. This will speed things up as far as copper consumption in the AP, imo.
Click to expand...
 
Allow it to settle until no visible bits are suspended in solution. Decant off the majority of it without disturbing the sediment. Filter what remains. It is still a pain, but reduces the volume to be filtered by a considerable amount.
 
He was here just a few minutes ago and reading this thread. Maybe he hasnā€™t collected enough to process yet??..
 
Y
Watcher said:
Evening all, looking to find the best method to filter gold foils and dust from an AP bath without struggling with coffee filters and end up losing some pieces? please and thank you

Steve.
Click to expand...
You need to strain the solid pieces out by using a perforated bucket to hold your plated items. So you can lift the bucket out to strain the gold and agitate the AP.
Then let it settle and decant when no insoluble copper chloride is in the AP.
Wash the copper salts out with HCl to avoid insoluble cuprous chloride in the foils. Then dissolve the foils.
So wash and decant after settling rather than filtering.
If an AP filter clogs, washing with HCl helps as it us usually insoluble copper chloride clogging the filter.
 

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