Copper recovery

[worker0]

Heloo again,

I have lot of tiny cables ( phone lines, network cables, cellphone chargers ) I dont have time to strip them and it is time consuming. I was wondering since there are only copper and plastic, Can I cut them in small pieces and dissolve it in HCL and peroxide and cement them on iron or aluminum? Cables are so thiny that copper will burn instantly if placed on fire and as said it is time consuming to strip them by hand.

Edit: Few months ago i discussed with one of reputable members here, and they said that this is not rentabile.

1 L of HCL cost about 0.49 $ and H202 about 0.55 per 1 dL

Thanx

 

[Geo]

It would be easier to pyrolize the wire. If done correctly, the coating does not burn. It is simply heated to the point that the volatile aromatics in the coating is liberated in the form of a gas. The gas is flammable and can be used as fuel to keep the mass hot. External heat will have to be used near the end to ensure that all of the coating has been pyrolized. Look for a member of the forum named NoIdea. He has some very good post about the subject.
http://www.goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=19243

 

[worker0]

It would be easier to pyrolize the wire. If done correctly, the coating does not burn. It is simply heated to the point that the volatile aromatics in the coating is liberated in the form of a gas. The gas is flammable and can be used as fuel to keep the mass hot. External heat will have to be used near the end to ensure that all of the coating has been pyrolized. Look for a member of the forum named NoIdea. He has some very good post about the subject.
http://www.goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=19243

Thank you Geo, I will study that again. It is hard for me to make pyrolise because Im in process of making "drum"/ for pyrolisis. I was also interested for AP method as a experiment.

 

[Geo]

Copper(II) chloride or "AP" is a good way to liberate gold from small gold plated items where the base metal is removed and the gold stays as a solid as gold foils. By adding a source of air, as in bubbling air through the solution, will keep the solution oxygenated. This serves two purposes. It agitates the material to help loosen the foils and it drives the dissolution of the base metal. Once the process is finished, the solution can be used almost indefinitely. The solution builds over time because after the solution becomes dark, almost black, more acid needs to be added. Also, there needs to be room in the solution to absorb the copper salt. For this reason, I add equal amounts of water and HCl. Keep in mind that eventually, the solution will grow in amount that exceeds what ever container you started in. This overage is dealt with by adjusting the PH by diluting the solution and adding steel to the solution. The steel will cement copper metal from the solution. As the steel dissolves, copper metal will precipitate. This copper metal can be collected and eventually melted and cast for resale or reuse.

 

[Martijn]

http://www.goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=85&t=22377
This one Geo refers to i think. For small amounts but can be scaled up. Great design. Great idea.

I doubt that AP will eat all the thin copper wires inside the insulation. You would have to shred or cut the cables into very short pieces.
Comparable to the labour needed to strip manually. (while eliminating the cost for chemicals, and creating toxic chemical waste)

If the wires are that thin, how much copper can be expected to be there? What is the difference in return gained by stripping to bare copper compared to just selling the cables as they are? And is that really worth the time and labour? Or the environmental impact?

Martijn.

 

[anachronism]

If the wires are that thin, how much copper can be expected to be there? What is the difference in return gained by stripping to bare copper compared to just selling the cables as they are? And is that really worth the time and labour? Or the environmental impact?

Martijn.

This is exactly the right point. No point being a busy fool. Trade it on.

 

[canedane]

Geo, 1 kilo of pure PVC contains 57% Cl, and it all comes out in the air if you pyrolize it or burn it. PVC will give Cl and rain down as HCl.
You need a scrubber to pyrolize it with out air pollution, and 1 kg PVC generate 2 kilo gypsum from the scrubber, with a lot of toxin from the phalater, there makes the PVC soft so the wire is flexisible.
The right way is to chop the wire and seperate the granulated wire with help from gravity and pressure air, this is the way it is done industriel in Europe. It also seperate Al, Pb and the Fe with a magnet.
The PVC can not be reused and end up as landfill.
That is why i sell all thin Cu wires and hand strip (or rent a stripping machine if i have large amounts) the heavy cobber wire.
Henrik

 

[Geo]

In the US, there are acceptable limits of output. This doesn't help mother earth if you are inclined to care about minuscule amounts entering the environment. Adding hypochlorite to HCl emits huge amounts of chlorine gas. Perhaps it should come with the same warnings.

 

[johnny309]

we

Geo, 1 kilo of pure PVC contains 57% Cl, and it all comes out in the air if you pyrolize it or burn it. PVC will give Cl and rain down as HCl.
You need a scrubber to pyrolize it with out air pollution, and 1 kg PVC generate 2 kilo gypsum from the scrubber, with a lot of toxin from the phalater, there makes the PVC soft so the wire is flexisible.
The right way is to chop the wire and seperate the granulated wire with help from gravity and pressure air, this is the way it is done industriel in Europe. It also seperate Al, Pb and the Fe with a magnet.
The PVC can not be reused and end up as landfill.
That is why i sell all thin Cu wires and hand strip (or rent a stripping machine if i have large amounts) the heavy cobber wire.
Henrik

Is the right way. If you do not have the melt capacity of industrial ,in which plastic will provide you some extra "fuel", burning that in open air will give an 30% loss in Cu by weight(if Cu oxidize is volatile) and alot of harmful gases.

PVC can be reused for PVC water sewage....they add CaCO3...and then end result is pipes....orange for sewage...