Un sorted extraction

[LT_golden]

Is this the oven you cook your food in? Like in your kitchen?

The one I used had been in storage for the last three years. Since we moved, that oven no longer fit anywhere reasonable at our new place. I dug it out for this purpose, but found that there were no stains, no smells, and no corrosion.

Is baking PCBs in aqueous sodium hydroxide in an oven used for cooking really a bad idea?

On YouTube, there was this dude with a... magnificent beard... who did just that. Granted, his whole demeanor made me want to do more research, but I figured that lye was just a cleaning agent... and inside the oven... shouldn’t be too bad, right?

 

[anachronism]

3) Place pan with solution/boards/components into oven, turn on and set to ~200 deg. C, and let cook for 20-30 minutes. I believe that even a conventional oven should be fine, because, well, sodium hydroxide / lye is basically just a common cleaning agent; and you won't be drinking the solution or licking the insides of the oven, so I believe that doing it inside your home oven should be safe. Alternatively, you could do it on a grill, but contact with the flames makes me scared that the glass would break... But I've heard good results from direct heating, too.

That's really all there is. Great Old Ones, please do let us know your suggestions and/or corrections. I've done this successfully myself. My oven showed no damage, and had no odors from the aqueous sodium hydroxide fumes. I haven't done a litmus test on the insides of the oven, though.

No.

Seriously - you cannot do this and please don't be giving this kind of advice on this forum. It's just ridiculous and wrong. I'm not entirely sure why Jim has been the only one to pick up on this so far.

If this is the kind of thing you're used to suggesting then there are other places more suited for you than this forum.

 

[LT_golden]

Seriously - you cannot do this and please don't be giving this kind of advice on this forum. It's just ridiculous and wrong. I'm not entirely sure why Jim has been the only one to pick up on this so far.

If this is the kind of thing you're used to suggesting then there are other places more suited for you than this forum.

Hi anachronism,

Got it. Truth to be told, I’m going through my first run ever on refining, myself. I realize that I’m probably not qualified to give any sort of advice relating to chemicals, etc., since I’ve never worked with them before now.

So, I sincerely apologize to any members who have come across that post of mine. Please disregard my bad advice!

Is there any way I could go back and delete my post or modify contents to remove that part?
EDIT: I found the Edit button and have gone back and modified my post. Is it more acceptable now?

And anachronism, could you help me understand or point me in the right direction of why doing this in an oven used for cooking is such a bad idea?

Thanks. I’m trying to learn, even through mistakes, though I am hoping not to make too many... especially the dangerous ones. And I sincerely appreciate anyone who’d help with correct and safe information.

 

[nickvc]

I’ll try and help point out some of the more obvious dangers involved in recovery and refining.
By burning, pyrolysis or incineration gases and some solids will be released virtually all of which are toxic to some degree and some of which are highly dangerous which is why you should never do these processes inside your home or use any item that you or will use in your house.
Simple recovery processes using acids release fumes all of which will cause considerable damage to the fabric of any building and particularly any metals in them unless proper extraction is used that keeps a constant airflow removing the fumes.
Refining goes even further into the danger zone with release of chlorine gas or noxx fumes neither of which you want to inhale and depending on what you working with the solutions and fumes can contain toxic salts which will eventually make you terminally ill.

For all newbies I thoroughly recommend reading the safety section here on the forum and understanding exactly what the dangers are and where from.

 

[anachronism]

Hi LT - thanks for your comments.

As Nick mentioned it's the other things that are produced when you have a reaction that cause the issues rather than the caustic soda itself. I agree that reading the safety section is a great start. If you start off by being sensible and safe then you'll progress by being sensible and safe. 8) 8)

Jon

 

[kurtak]

Take Jim, Jon & Nicks advise :!: :!: :!:

The gold under the solder mask of "consumer" circuit boards is so ultra thin that it is not worth the cost of the chems needed to recover the gold --- in fact it is so thin it is not worth the cost of the chems to recover the gold if the CBs had no solder mask to start with - so the cost of the NaOH is an additional cost to the gold recovery of an already chem cost loser

Therefore - it is flat out "foolish" to spend the money - let alone the time on this DANGEROUS process :!: :!: :!:

Kurt