AP. What Did I do Wrong?
- Thread starter Astraveller
- Start date
Help Support Gold Refining Forum:
wow you make it look so simple! i cant wait to try my first run. i can use this same process for pins right?
Astraveller
Active member
The only thing we put into into this process were fingers. Actually that's not strictly true - we put in a few CPUs - but only a few - just to see what would happen and decided we would need a seperate process for them - but for fingers this works a treat.
The reason this works so well is that there are only two metals involved - copper and the plated gold - the AP dissolves the copper but not the gold - so the gold floats away and can be filtered.
Once you add other metals to the mix the equation changes.
We are newbies but yes, it is that simple.
Linton.
The reason this works so well is that there are only two metals involved - copper and the plated gold - the AP dissolves the copper but not the gold - so the gold floats away and can be filtered.
Once you add other metals to the mix the equation changes.
We are newbies but yes, it is that simple.
Linton.
qst42know
Well-known member
Very nice batch. I wish my gathering was as productive. :wink:
Keep us posted.
Keep us posted.
Sorry I was reading the forum on the lost gold I'm really discouraged at my very little knowledge of gold recovery yet went in head strong thinking I got this only to slap self in face with all the ifs ...the story of my Life they call it Insanity ... I start by telling my hard work dedication and dream of breaking down 650 flat screens not counting multiple computers laptops and servers ...got my solution started small ended up with 1 five gallon bucket of muratic peroxide solution and 1 five gallon bucket of muratic nitric solution I kept adding gold boards 2 1/2 five gallon buckets full of gold boards gold fingers pins connective pieces jewelry some gold some gold plated obtained urea and SMB took just 3 cups of solution out to see what would happen and added irea nothing added SMB nothing I lost my gold all that work everything is gone where did it go
First of all.
Do not double post, and absolutely not triple post.
Next, find a way to store your solution safely.
Some of your gold is in the solution and
some is hidden inside the boards.
Then start reading and ask questions
when you need to or don't understand.
By beeing lucky you have hopefully not injured yourself
or anyone else.
Do not double post, and absolutely not triple post.
Next, find a way to store your solution safely.
Some of your gold is in the solution and
some is hidden inside the boards.
Then start reading and ask questions
when you need to or don't understand.
By beeing lucky you have hopefully not injured yourself
or anyone else.
I'm not good with posting still learning that too ...what do you mean by being lucky..... And what do yo mean gold is in boards ...that being the case I'm glad I still have them I put them in the 5 gallon bucket I used to rinse them with...I got a mess on my hands I don't know where to start I refuse to ruin anymore pieces I want to see 5 to 7 ounces come out of the solution I am reading and trying to figure out what to buy to complete the process and pray it will work and then am eager to process another batch with more knowledge and seeing how good I can be lol I really want to see the gold I will be so happy sorry for the confusion I'm a old lady lol thanks for converting to me thank you very much
What I said, inside the boards.
You have dissolved the gold while base metals ( copper traces inside the boards plus who knows what else)
are still present, which causes the gold to cement
out inside the boards. And on any other exposed metal on the board.
So the gold is there, but out of reach, at least some of it.
Do as I said now, stash and secure the bords and solution in a safe manner and start studying.
Hokes book should be the first. Ask questions here
when you need additional information.
Then in 6 months or so you may or may not be ready
to continue your journey.
You have dissolved the gold while base metals ( copper traces inside the boards plus who knows what else)
are still present, which causes the gold to cement
out inside the boards. And on any other exposed metal on the board.
So the gold is there, but out of reach, at least some of it.
Do as I said now, stash and secure the bords and solution in a safe manner and start studying.
Hokes book should be the first. Ask questions here
when you need additional information.
Then in 6 months or so you may or may not be ready
to continue your journey.
1mysurveymail
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2013
- Messages
- 50
Pruitt68 said:
First. Stop. Whatever mess you brewed is not going anywhere. Don't add anything to it, until you get help. I am not qualified, but I went through what you are going through, and commiserate.
Second, don't "hijack" an old thread by tagging some new thing onto the end. Start a new thread in the "help needed" section. If you clearly write out a question with the scenario you find yourself in, someone may answer your "SOS." Be specific, type out what you did, step by step that got you into this mess. Be prepared to hold your breath.
"AP" is just a "recovery process." There are multiple tutorials on this site to help. Or, at the very least watch 40 hours of YouTube videos, where they PURPOSEFULLY leave out steps and information.
The "AP" only really separates gold/Au from what it is plated onto. It ALSO, is easily contaminated by just tossing every shiny piece of computer components into it. AP will also dissolve tin/Sn (the enemy). Unless you SEE gold floating in your AP then you are still at SQUARE ONE. IF you just put clean material, like just the edges of RAM chips and cards these will be floating in your AP. The amounts of Au/gold in E-scrap is pretty MINUSCULE. Unless you started out with a whole shoe-box full of RAM chips (even then) the amount of Au to be recovered is disappointingly small. The good news is that you are attempting to learn something. I am under-qualified to sort out your mess though.
The gold is in there, the "trick" is learning how to get it out, or as said here in the parlance, "dropped" (precipitated from solution).
BTW, You can make your own "Stannous." Get a small glass bottle with a tight screw on top, like the smallest bottles in the liquor store. Once the bottle is empty and clean, put a few inches of lead free solder in the bottle. Add a small (~100ml) amount of HCl. Wait a day or so. Now you have made "Stannous" which is a test solution for the presence of Au. Most people use Q-tips dipped in whatever solution you are testing, and stannous. There are multiple ways to preform this test, but the idea is the same. A purple/black result means there is gold present. However there are multiple caveats that can yield a false positive.
So read more.
Don't toss any solutions out, if you must, get a sturdy 5 gallon bucket or glass container with a loose fitting, or vented lid (put a hole in it) and store it until you are sure how to proceed. Now that I went backwards and read your post, just leave it all be for a while.
In the meantime download a copy of "Refinement of Precious Metals by C.M. Hoke" and place it under your pillow to learn while you sleep. C.M. Hoke is the patron saint of this website, and you will be shunned, or mocked until you can grasp how an ~100 year old book can answer your questions about recovering and refining the crazy E-scrap that most people start out with. Putting her KJV under my pillow did not work for me, but when someone here tells you to read "Hoke" 100 times, take the printout and beat yourself over the head with it. Kidding, but I wish you the best of luck getting ACTUAL questions answered.
In the meantime, build a time machine, and take a computer back to C.M Hoke and ask her to recover and refine the guts. WITHOUT telling her what metals are in all those chips, (because most of "US" don't even know really). She might actually help, or she may be too busy with her work processing materials that are composed of far more simple things, like the scrap from a jeweler's bench sweeps. HEY! Every "Patron Saint" needs a challenge, like TO ACTUALLY HELP THE PEOPLE REQUESTING HELP. Right?
If you have a question about why your 50 year old car won't start or run, I can help. If you have a computer problem, I can help. I post on several non-gold related forums to lift people up, and give them a hand when they need it. Also, I learned a lesson from "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien: I am not too busy smelting gold like the Dwarves under the Lonely Mountain to give aid to the poor people in "Lake-Town."
