Ive processed a small batch of fingers, pins, 1 cell phone board using the AP method and worked pretty well my first time. I added just shy of 2 grams of Bondies Stump-Out which is basicly SMB to my HCl-Cl solution and nothings happening. Im pretty sure I added a bit too much bleach and found on the forums to dilute my solution with water or heating it so the extra chlorine comes out of the solution<---(Mentioned by LAzerSteve so im going to go with this approach) What I cant figure out is do I let it boil on my hot plate or simmer? Would I need to add more smb to the mix after?
Gold not dropping with smb
- Thread starter travis86
- Start date
Help Support Gold Refining Forum:
glorycloud
Well-known member
If it is a small batch of fingers, you may not have much gold to drop.
Let it sit over night and see if you have a dusting of powder on
the bottom of your container.
Let it sit over night and see if you have a dusting of powder on
the bottom of your container.
It's a good idea to let the solution sit for 24 hrs so the Chlorine can evaporate off. Then dilute it with 3 parts clean water, not tap water as most tap water has Chlorine in it. Then mix in an equal amount of SMB to what you expect to be Gold, example: if you have .50 grams of Gold in solution, add approximately .50 grams of SMB. Then let that solution sit for another 24 hours so the Gold can precipitate from the solution and settle on the bottom of your container. If you started with less than 1/2 of a pound of fingers, you may not see the powder very well until you siphon the solution off. Be careful not to pull any solids from the bottom of the container when you siphon the solution off.
eeTHr
Well-known member
travis---
Do not boil solutions with dissolved gold in them. You can lose values from sudden explosive boiling, and from excessive vapors escaping with gold in them.
Chlorine evaporates out easier than nitric.
Some people set it out in the sun all day, and some let it sit over night.
Some just warm it for an hour or so on a hot plate set to a temperature safely below boiling, or use an old electric coffee pot to warm it, or even a little coffee cup warmer (which is not quite as hot, but will work, just takes a little longer).
Adding water won't get rid of nitric or chlorine, but some water is chemically necessary for precipitation (If you evaporate all the water out, then add SMB, nothing will happen till you add some water, then you get a sudden, instant precipitation as long as there is no nitric or chlorine). Excessive contaminants in the solution may hamper precipitation, but it sounds like what you have there should drop all right.
Do not boil solutions with dissolved gold in them. You can lose values from sudden explosive boiling, and from excessive vapors escaping with gold in them.
Chlorine evaporates out easier than nitric.
Some people set it out in the sun all day, and some let it sit over night.
Some just warm it for an hour or so on a hot plate set to a temperature safely below boiling, or use an old electric coffee pot to warm it, or even a little coffee cup warmer (which is not quite as hot, but will work, just takes a little longer).
Adding water won't get rid of nitric or chlorine, but some water is chemically necessary for precipitation (If you evaporate all the water out, then add SMB, nothing will happen till you add some water, then you get a sudden, instant precipitation as long as there is no nitric or chlorine). Excessive contaminants in the solution may hamper precipitation, but it sounds like what you have there should drop all right.
Thank you eethr! There is about 100ml of tap water in the solution from me cleaning the filter of all gold containing liquid with a squirt bottle. I will put the solution on my hot plate on a low setting. Ithought it wouldnt make sense to boil it since my gold would evaporate, I just wanted to make sure since you guys are the pros and im a newb.
Geo
Well-known member
place your reaction vessel into a larger container such as a Pyrex sauce pan or casserole dish and add water till it either reaches the top of your solution or just under the top of the pan which ever comes first. place on your heating source and put it on the lowest setting and let it gently warm. do not let it come to a boil. cover the reaction vessel with a watch glass or a glass plate. the heat will drive off the chlorine in about an hour after the solution gets too hot to touch comfortably.
yvonbug
Well-known member
Hi! Mind if I butt in? I'm haveing the same problem. But I was also wondering, I'm useing water from a well. And we think there is a softener system on it. Plus, we think the iron content is kinda high,( cuz it ruins our kool-aid, and tastes kinda yukky). I used to use distilled water for everything. But haven't for the last 2 batches. The big batch I did about a year ago came out fine. This batch isn't dropping at all.
Iron can be a problem. I use well water too but mine is filtered with a Royal Berkey water filter. Well water can also contain gasses that may affect the process. Hydrogen Sulfide is a common problem with well water. I do not know if this would present a problem or not. Maybe one of our more knowledgeable members can offer an answer.
dtectr
Well-known member
Water "softening" simply exchanges a sodium or potassium ion for a calcium ion, which is why glass cleaned with "softened" water still exhibits spotting (white explosion) from the salts. Or, an excess of calcium = an excess of sodium or potassium salts.
Softened water does NOT equal purified water. The effects of excess sodium or potassium salts will have to be explained by some of our chemists.
Distillation, or Reverse Osmosis (RO) is necessary for PURE water, though I can't justify the waste inherent in RO. (3 gallons waste to one gallon purified)
IMHO
Softened water does NOT equal purified water. The effects of excess sodium or potassium salts will have to be explained by some of our chemists.
Distillation, or Reverse Osmosis (RO) is necessary for PURE water, though I can't justify the waste inherent in RO. (3 gallons waste to one gallon purified)
IMHO
Geo
Well-known member
a couple of the most common problems with getting gold to precipitate out is (1) you have free chemicals that keeps dissolving the gold as it precipitates out and (2) excess amounts of precipitant being used. one scenario has no visible change in the solution (1) and the other the solution changes color and even sometimes looks like muddy water and the precipitate will not settle (2).in both of these scenarios the answer would be to heat the solution (1) to drive off the free chemical so the gold can precipitate out and (2) drive out the sulfur dioxide gas thats holding the gold in suspension. a third scenario is the less frequent but more troubling answer: there was never any gold in the solution to start with.
yvonbug
Well-known member
Hi Harold! It's been awhile, Huh?-Yvonne-
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2007
- Messages
- 8,360
Indeed it has. Sounds like you've moved a couple times. Times are tough for lots of folks. Hope you're doing ok.yvonbug said:
I'm curious. Do you finally understand the significance (importance, really) of testing with stannous chloride?
Harold
yvonbug
Well-known member
Oh yes, I do. I've been looking for my tin solder roll I just bought, I think my hubby took it to work. But I'll get it back (if there is any left of it). I told him that was a "no touchy" item. Yes, and it makes life alot easier, like you said, it shouldn't be a guessing game. You get alot of let downs without it. I think my problem is too much free chlorine? I'm calming down now, so things should clear-up. I know better than to rush this stuff. That's when I forget where I'm at and mess everything up. :roll:
yvonbug
Well-known member
Uh, I forgot, is heating it the only way to get rid of free chemicals? In this Acid-Clorox method? And can Sodium Sulfite go bad? Even when stored in an airtight container?
arthur kierski
Well-known member
when gold is dificult to drop with smb,i add a small quantity of naoh and stirr the solution until it darkens(mantaining the ph acid)-------with me always works---
Arthur
Arthur
Geo
Well-known member
although heating will drive off both nitric acid and chlorine there's no need to heat chlorine solutions as chlorine will evaporate at room temperature. excess chlorine will evaporate out in a night and day and a quick and harmless way to check is to waft your hand over the vessel toward your face and sniff, if you smell strong chlorine smell there's still chlorine gassing off. *DO NOT DO THIS WITH NITRIC SOLUTIONS* you will smell chlorine even if the solution is ready but if there's no sting to the smell it should be weak enough to dilute and precipitate. AR on the other hand is another story. nitric acid will not evaporate at room temperature and must be removed from solution by other means. heating is one of them, by heating the solution to a simmer but not boiling and keeping it there will cause the nitric to evaporate out of solution.
eeTHr
Well-known member
The word "simmer" means at or just below the boiling point. I know what you mean, but beginners might not.
The boiling point of AR is significantly higher than that of water, because of the nitric. So, as the nitric evaporates off, the water can suddenly boil explosively, throwing solution out, even with a watch glass.
The boiling point of AR is significantly higher than that of water, because of the nitric. So, as the nitric evaporates off, the water can suddenly boil explosively, throwing solution out, even with a watch glass.
