# lazersteve's videos



## Anonymous (Jul 20, 2009)

Hello, my name is albert, I have worked in the it field for over 20 years and have taken up an interest in refining all of the precious metals fom computers. I have access to a constant supply of all types of computer parts and would be interested in having videos done that show me exactly what to do. My first interest is the platinum in hard drives. I would be willing to pay a fee to have this done for me, the video. I have a high school background in math and science, so most of the processes would be familiar to me. If you are interested in helping me out e-mail me.

[email protected]


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## Harold_V (Jul 20, 2009)

Hard drives should not be considered as a source of platinum. 

As you are no doubt aware, Lazersteve has already produced excellent video discs that show the various processes, and is still producing others. Please check his web site for the information you seek. 

http://www.goldrecovery.us

Harold


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## Anonymous (Jul 20, 2009)

I have checked his site, but i can't find the videos about harddrives.


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## lazersteve (Jul 20, 2009)

The hard drive video only demonstrates the dismantling of the drive. I'm in the process of moving all my videos to a newer format and that one may still be in the conversion stages.

As for the platters containing Platinum , the fact is that some of them do, but it only exists on the order of 20 parts per million (that's 20 grams per metric ton). For this reason I do not recommend them as a viable source of platinum. Catalytic converters are a much better source of PGMs.

Steve


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## Anonymous (Jul 21, 2009)

I have access to between 100 and 150 per day quite regularly, but more likely 75 to 100. Platinum is platinum, and it doesn't cost me anything but the time to process it. I still think it's worth my while.


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## Anonymous (Jul 21, 2009)

the place I get the stuff from just gives them to the provincial recycling program and gets nothing for it. They also have large quantities of cpu, ram, and circuitboards but they sell that stuff. There is also alot of aluminum and brass in hard drives. are the magnets worth anything? what about the brackets that hold the magnets, what are they, they shield the magnets from the surrounding components.


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## Chumbawamba (Jul 21, 2009)

Hi Steve.

I recently made acquaintances with an auto scrapper that claims to have a large pile of cats that he wants to mine for the PGMs. I've been researching the process for extraction and have thus far managed to read the brief sections in Ammen's book (see excerpt below) and I watched the video on your site but that just shows me how to extract the honeycomb. Will your "Fundamentals of Pt and Pd" videos give me useful insight into trying my hand at recovery?

I was thinking that it would probably be a matter of grinding up the honeycombs or pellets into a nice fine powder, then dropping out the metals with some chemical process, but it would seem there is perhaps a lot more background chemistry I would have to master before I would be successful. I'm starting to get the impression that if it was that simple then there would be more information out there.

Your comments would be greatly appreciated.

From Recovery and Refining of Precious Metals (2nd Edition):

_Recovery of Platinum Metal Group from Auto Catalytic Converters

One method is similar to using Fe as an assay collector. It is reported that the catalytic converter rods, honey comb, and pellets (Al2O3 + PtPd Rh) are simply smelted with scrap steel in an electric arc furnace; the molten steel precious metal alloy teemed into H2O to granulate it. The granulated metal is then digested in a 20% by volume of sulphuric acid. The values are now concentrated in the insolubles.

Another method is via gas phase, also known as gas-phase transport. In this method, the values are converted into volatile chlorides (gas) of PtCl, PdCl, and so forth. These chlorides are then collected by a condenser or trapped on NaCl crystals. The material is heated and a gas-phase composition is passed through the heated material where it converts the metallics to their respective volatile chrolides which exit the reactor as a gas phase to be captured on salt or condensed._


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## lazersteve (Jul 21, 2009)

My Platinum and Palladium DVD covers cats from harvest to melting and every step in between.

I'm nearing the point where I can demonstrate the gas-phase transport method soon in video format.

I've never attempted the alloy collection method you posted since I don't have access to a large furnace. 

Steve


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## markqf1 (Jul 21, 2009)

Steve you are an icon.
Rather than hoard your info for profit as, many have done in the past, you have made it readily available to all of the members of this forum.
For that I, for one, salute you and your integrity.

Mark


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## Anonymous (Sep 29, 2009)

I would like to find out what to do to order the platinum and palladium dvd. I would also be interested in any information that you could help with on the process for harvesting platinum from harddrive platters.


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## patnor1011 (Sep 29, 2009)

albertlarocque said:


> I would like to find out what to do to order the platinum and palladium dvd. I would also be interested in any information that you could help with on the process for harvesting platinum from harddrive platters.



let me do some math based on posts above: 
you will need roughly 30 of platters to make kilo. 30,000 for one metric ton. you said that you can get about 100 a day. it means that you will have your metric ton of platters in 10 months. After 10 months you will harvest 20 grams of platinum which will get you 1000$. That means 100$ a month.
you have to get 100 a day, and all of them have to contain platinum. not all of them does as Steve said and if you will take off at least every sunday you will end up with less than 50$ a month.


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## lazersteve (Sep 29, 2009)

albertlarocque said:


> I would like to find out what to do to order the platinum and palladium dvd. I would also be interested in any information that you could help with on the process for harvesting platinum from harddrive platters.




I sell the DVD on my website:

http://www.goldrecovery.us

The user name is *gold* and the password is *goldm1ner**

Steve


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## lmschers (Sep 26, 2010)

RE: albertlaroque

I read your posted question about refining harddrives.
I have been trying to recycle them too.
I dismantled about 40 of them and saved the disks and magnets (the magnets are just for fun).

I washed the disks in Aqua Regia and got a vivid green solution. 
I should be able to work out some platinum from it, but not much. I might not see any at all.

You are in a much better position than I, If you can get 100 disks per day, I think you're in luck.
Don't pay attention to the dudes that try to say you can't do it, or it's not worthwhile.
It appears that no one else is doing it. That should be enough reason to make it worthwhile 

I looked for harddisk patents online and found one.
It said that there was a 15-20nm film of platinum on each side of the disk.
So lets add together both sides and safely say there is a 35nm cylinder of platinum on the disk.
volume of a cylinder= (pi) * r^2 * (height)

(3.14 * (4.5cm) * 35nm) - (3.14* 1.5cm* 35nm) = roughly 329nm^3 or .0000329cm^3
this should account for the hole in the disk

Then account for the density of platinum "21.45 g cm^3"
21.45 * .0000329 = .0007 grams of platinum on a disk.

So... If you dissolved 1000 disks, you should get around .7g of platinum.


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## patnor1011 (Sep 26, 2010)

lmschers said:


> RE: albertlaroque
> 
> I read your posted question about refining harddrives.
> I have been trying to recycle them too.
> ...



There is gold in oceans saltwater. Tons of gold. Ready to be refined out........It appears that nobody else is doing it. 
But you are certainly not going to make it worthwhile. 
We do not aim to discourage anybody. I am happy when I find new way how to make few bucks. Your way of processing hdd platter is nothing short of wasting money. And if by any chance you can get your acids for free it is still wasting of time.


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## lmschers (Dec 9, 2010)

hey don't get me wrong, i'm just trying to be supportive.

1000 disks for .7g isn't exactly a gold mine.
I'm not really thinking about making money with this.
it would just be cool if you could say that you could do it.
dissolving the disks in acid doesn't make any sense, i tried.
So maybe a quick dip would work, or maybe electrolysis will work.

I believe that where there's a will, there's a way.

and yeah, there's gold in salt water.
If you could get the water at the bottom of the ocean... i bet you could get more gold out of it.
it's just not humanly possible to get down into the ocean trenches...
yet.


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