First timer confused

[aptus]

What a helpful site and I am sure the answer to my question is here somewhere. I have read and read to the point that I am confused beyond comprehension. Help from anyone is greatly appreciated and please excuse my ignorance. To that end.... I have made a sulfuric cell for stripping gold plating off of e-waste-mostly pins and contacts. I have used a Pyrex loaf dish and a small battery charger utilizing a clump of lead and copper pipe that I cut and flattened to make a basket for the anode and cathode. The sulfuric acid is new for a auto battery. The cell seems to work fine as it removes the gold from the pis in a matter of seconds when only doing a few. The solution turns black with what I suspect is the gold.

Here are my questions. What is the next step in my final goal of getting the gold. I am confused as I believe I am to let it settle then maybe rinse? I think I am trying to avoid using the auqa-regina method but I am mixed up as what the next step is due to reading about the ar methods. I keep referring back to Hooke and the handbook but my thinking is contaminated by trying to absorb the different methods at one time. I thought it better to ask then cause a castropy. Thank you in advance.-Aptus

Question 1. Can I let it settle, remove all acid I can and filter, thus saving the gold powder and then add 3 parts Borax and melt? If rinsing is needed, what do I rinse with?

Question 2. Should I use carbon and lead for the anode and cathode or is the copper and lead fine? I am trying to avoid contaminating the solution.

 

[kronix]

I believe you decant what you can leaving the powder in the bottom, then dilute, and wash powder well.
Dissolve in hcl-cl, evaporate free chlorine, precipitate and then melt.

 

[Pantherlikher]

The best answer anyone can give at this confusing time, for me as well, is to Get your game plan. Which is Sulphuric cell stripping. Go back and read through the processes and make notes of each step along the way as well as where to find more info. Making notes on each step of each process read is the best way to be sure you are on the right track.

kronix sounds right but be sure details are followed. Like the right way to wash so you don't have a problem.
BS.
Still looking for note taking devices to straighten brain train strain in the rain...

 

[g_axelsson]

Hello Aptus and welcome to the forum.

The sulfuric acid is new for a auto battery.

If you are using sulphuric acid for a car battery straight from the bottle I think you have 38%. Anything below 90% will dissolve base metals too, so much of your powder could be just base metals.

If you want to avoid aqua regia you could use the Hcl/CL (Hydrochloric acid / chlorine) method as it is really effective on powders.

Since you have been here only four hours I don't think you have read a lot of the thousands of posts. There are a lot discussion about the sulphuric cell. Do a search and you will find many answers on questions you didn't even know you had.
This is a starter : https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Agoldrefiningforum.com+%22sulphuric+cell

You should also go through the guided tour of the forum, you find the link at the bottom of any of Lazersteves postings, for example this one http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=48&t=14722&hilit=+cell#p148248

/Göran

 

[kadriver]

Here is a sulfuric acid stripping cell clean out procedure from lazersteve that I used and it worked great:

http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=7093&p=63697#p63697

kadriver

 

[kadriver]

Hope this helps



kadriver