Ok I will do that, I will have to check and see if i have fertilizer. I'm looking for the white pellets.
Yes that is correct the white ones.
I have a couple questions if you don't mind. Yes I am reading hokes book but I'm just trying to understand what is happening here.
When I use the nitric acid to dissolve the base metals, that solution is a nitrate? correct?
AS far as I know yes.
If i were to use nitric acid and hcl that solution it is a nitrate until i boil all of the solution and then it becomes a chlorine of some sort?
Incorrect, when you mix the HCL/nitric it make a chlorine that attacks the gold. You do not have to boil it just mixing them together completes the solution to disolve the gold and any other base metals.
If you heat the solution it will put everything from platinum down in the food chain into the solution.
If you have even the slightes bit of nitric on the gold you have disolved the base metals with when you add HCL you will disolve some gold. That is the reason for the washes in water and the steps taken to clean any residue of the nitric
Based on what metals are in the solution?
Nope metals in the solution have nothing to do with what the HCL/Nitric does when it is mixed. Don't jump the gun here follow me...
Now you said if there is copper in the solution, the gold will cling to the copper,,,Does that depend on how much copper is in the solution?
Lets say you are disolving some base metals in your nitric. You have a saturated solution of copper with gold flakes, or gold specks. lets say you use a spatulata to stir another solution of HCL. You dip the tool in water and think it is washed off. But low and behold it is not and poof you have just disolved some of your gold. But it is such a small amount that you can't detect it. Now that small amount of disolved gold is going to try to percipitate out, either as a small brown speck or if you have enough gold disolved it will try to plate onto some of the copper floating around in the solution and make it look like a larger piece of gold.
Anything that can develop chlorine in nitiric can have the possability of disolving gold. Even tap water to an extent.
Anything that can develop chlorine in HCL can have the same effect.
When I am dissolving the base metals in Nitric acid the ph is up?
What about when I am using an aqua regia?
Same thing. A base will change it, like soda ash, ash from a fire place, caustic soda. But not mixing HCL/nitric.
I have had alot of problems when I use nitrc acid instead of hcl cl, Is there a certain kind of glass that I can use to boil down? I have broken about 3 glass pyrex dishes and now I'm gun shy.
Use a coffee pot. Or put your pyrex dish inside of another dish with sand in it to keep from heat shocking the glass. If you take you dish from the burner and put it on a cold surface you have the chance of breaking it as well because of themal shock.
Im trying to grasp what is going on with each process so that when something goes wrong, I have a little understanding on what is happening.
Hey thats no problem I was just thinking today that I'm coming upon a year being on here and one of my first questions was "How do I drop silver from HCL". :roll: Everyone has to learn.
I'll be back in hoke book tonight.
Thank you for your help and please bear with me, Im trying to really have an understanding here. Its all very overwhelming. I read posts and a little bit of the book and think i got it until i get outside and have the solution in front of me.
When it starts clicking for you, you will see it really isn't that hard.