Where to sell Rhodium

Hello all I am looking for a place that buys Rhodium. All the places that refine gold and platinum don't seem to deal with Rhodium.
I asked a member here for help and advise 2 or 3 months ago. I followed his advise. Sent a sample to Los Angeles,CA (have family there)
In CA. Rhodium seems to be a nasty minerial. My brother got it anyalized as a favor by a friend that works at a large refiner. Took about
2 months. Here is what he found minus company name since it was done as a favor.


Results I found about your powder,

Atomic # 45
Atomic symbol Rh
Atomic weight 102.9055
Color silvery white
Purity 89.9% to 99.9%?
Melts at 3570 degrees

This is rhodium III, it might be better I cannot melt it due to California law.
I used all kinds of acid to test the powder and aqua regia was the only one that dissolved
a little.

Exposure to rhodium (metal or dust) when melting can stain your skin.
I advise you to not melt this powder without controlled venting. Can cause respiratory problems.

That just didn't make any sense.

what part doesn't make sense Maybe I've been here to log and my english has gone bad

It would be useful to know the source of the rhodium compound you have.

Did you recover this or buy it in some prepared form?

Was this acquired from some industrial process?

Is it an oxide, a chloride, powder, liquid?

More information please.

It is recovered here in honduras. Its and oxide III. In the form of a dry grey powder. Looks just like the picture in wikipedia.
I am willing to spend some money to have it checked out on a ICP machine or some type of anyalizer I know this needs to be done.
Simply all I am asking for is where/who I can send it to, to be confirmed that it is rhodium with the intent of purchase

Where are you, Lou?

Whats the quanitity ? What sort of accountability you looking for?

Not sure want you mean by accountability. I have about 3 plus oz. in LA,CA. Have more here. Not processing anymore
right now until I know that its sellable and have a ICP type anyalise. Takes alot of time and chemicals to process.

I think I already talked to this guy some time back...

Anyway, I think it's pretty dubious. I think I told him that. Just something implausible about some chap getting together 3+ ozt of Rh2O3.

Is this mined?

As far as the assay goes... What took them two months could have been a two minute exercise.

Hello Lou Yes I talked to you some months back. I took you advise and sent it to my brother in LA. He's a gold silver scrapper
and knows alot of people in the bussiness there. Most of them don't even know what rhodium is. I have my doubts too.
Are you willing to look at it. I am willing to pay, noboby works for free. If it is what it is can you sell it. If it can not be sold
then why wast the money right. The people in LA say it cannot be sold.

While my comments (that will follow) are not directed towards this individual, my years of refining taught me that some people will not be denied, regardless of the lack of evidence to support that which they choose to believe. They often will spend a lifetime working feverishly on a project that has no basis in fact.

One of the reasons precious metals are costly, often prohibitively costly, is because they are scarce. To assume that an individual that has no particular training, nor a background in refining and otherwise processing precious metals, has managed to accumulate large amounts of what is rarely encountered, I would find questionable.

I spent more than 20 years refining precious metals. In that time, I processed, literally, tens of thousands of ounces of gold. I managed to accumulate, at the most, a tenth of an ounce of rhodium.

Harold

I definitly agree with what you said. That's why I have doubts. And that's why I want to send it to someone with experience.
Glady pop my bubble so I can move on, but with increased knowledge.
I have been reading the forum for well over a year. Great forum. I have great respect for all the moderators.

It is very unlikely to be rhodium oxide. Why? Rhodium is very difficult to oxidize.


Is it against the law to have rhodium oxide or to process it? I'm no lawyer, but I feel certain there is no such law. I do not think those people knew what they were talking about. Rhodium oxide can be bought and sold--I've seen it on more than a few occasions. Some members here have bought it from me...

It's not against the law to sell/buy/ or own. It's against Califorinia law to melt it unless you have a Califorinia aproved setup. Which as I understand
is very expense. The EPA over there very strict. I guess that is why refiners there don't want to touch it. But we all must understand while rhodium,
platinum, paldium, and iridium are basically harmless. The other two of the group can be very, very nasty. Osmium can stain your eye, make your
noise tingle for hours, and tear apart your lungs worse the chlorine. So you cannot blame the government for trying to protect people.
Lou you made me and offer to check out the rhodium before. A very good offer I might say. I would like to send it to you. I feel you have the best
knowledge and experience of this type mineral then anyone I could ever find. If you tell me it's tantalum I will believe you (cannot get hydrofluoric acid here).

Hmpf! I'm impressed you knew that HF can be used for that test.



Anyway, I think having a California approved setup is ludicrous!! What fume does it make? It's prized and known for not oxidizing when melted as well as having a low vapour pressure (it's added to Pt in crucibles to further suppress platinum's vapour pressure). This is California we're talking about though (that is a sleight against their silly regulations). They'll probably say rhodium causes cancer (to that I answer: rhodium compounds are known to effectively cure forms of cancer!).


Lou

Lou,

Do you care to elaborate on the testing with HF?

HF will disolve tantalum, but not rhodium.
My Brother brought it to a gold propecting place. They wouldn't even let him open the plasiic container.
There are just to many cars in California and EPA is trying to blame everything else.