Non-Chemical Melting copper

[firespot]

Hello all, basic question. I reclaim computers and pull the copper from laptops. I have a forge to melt the copper into bars but my question is, if I drop a small motor winding into the molten copper, will the steel rise to the top as slag, or will it melt into the liquid copper as an alloy? Meaning, do I need to strip the copper from the winding before melting? Thanks.

 

[jimdoc]

Why are you melting your copper into bars?

 

[firespot]

Because copper with solder on it gets less than pure copper, #1vs#2

 

[jimdoc]

Does the difference in prices cover the fuel cost for your forge, and your time?

 

[anachronism]

Does the difference in prices cover the fuel cost for your forge, and your time?

Nah

 

[Shark]

Copper is much like silver or gold coins. When a buyer sees the coin they know it is silver or gold (barring a few fakes). I have seen scrap yards that pay less for melted copper because they didn't recognize what kind it was such as water pipe, wire or motor winding's. Some will buy it at a lower price, some won't buy it at all, and a few will buy it as brass. Years ago I sold melted and cleaned aluminum in 25 pound blocks called "pigs". We got a very large premium because we used the buyers specified mold and had large amounts to move with a cheap source of fuel. The local yard offered less than the going rate because he "dealt in cans". We both sold to the same buyer, but he didn't know that. Melted copper will corrode a lot faster than most commercial coppers since often the melt will remove items that help protect it from oxidizing.

The moral of this story is check around before doing this melting and be sure it is worth the cost in time and money. It is possible you can come out way ahead, and possible you could loose a small fortune. I have melted some copper for bars for a copper cell. I enjoyed it and learned quite a bit. Profit wise I am still debating that one.

 

[kurtak]

Hello all, basic question. I reclaim computers and pull the copper from laptops. I have a forge to melt the copper into bars but my question is, if I drop a small motor winding into the molten copper, will the steel rise to the top as slag, or will it melt into the liquid copper as an alloy? Meaning, do I need to strip the copper from the winding before melting? Thanks.

NO :!: :!: :!: --- that will NOT work :!: :!: :!:

First of all the melt point of iron is 2,800 degrees F --- the melt point of copper is 1,984 F - so you need to get EVERYTHING to 3,000 F for all of it to become molten --- that's not going to happen in a forge with any sizable melt - you need a furnace

also iron does not alloy (well) with copper - nor does it separate once its all molten --- in other words once it is all molten & you pour it one metal does not go to the bottom & the other to the top - instead you end up with some area's of the pour that are high in iron with other area's high in copper

the iron will not go off in the slag unless you have a way to oxidize the iron once both the iron & copper are molten such as being able to blow oxygen into the "bottom" of the pool of the molten metal(s) --- better know what you are doing there or you will have molten metal EXPLODING everywhere --- & even at that - your melt needs to be "high" in copper & "low" in iron - the little motors you are talking about are high in iron & low in copper


Bottom line - NO :!: --- & certainly not with a forge - & even with a furnace you are going to need to know A LOT about smelting - it's NOT going to happen with just getting it all molten & using a "basic flux" (just borax & soda ash)

Kurt

 

[firespot]

Ok, thanks. Guess I need to do some stripping before I get melting. Thanks for the advice.

 

[snail]

I spent my first 20 years of employment working in the scrap business. What we are trying to tell you is no scrap dealer is going to pay #1 copper for a melted bar.
Where do you think the solder goes?
They can’t judge purity once it’s melted.

 

[anachronism]

I spent my first 20 years of employment working in the scrap business. What we are trying to tell you is no scrap dealer is going to pay #1 copper for a melted bar.
Where do you think the solder goes?
They can’t judge purity once it’s melted.

They can with an XRF gun which is why most scrap yards I know use them.

 

[Shark]

The nearest scrap yard to me with an xrf is over 50 miles (that I have found). There are 5 others closer that pay enough to not cover the cost of carrying it further. If we are talking tons, maybe, but anything less it won't pay to carry it that far. That is why we got paid so well on the aluminum, we were delivering 2 to 4 thousand pounds at a time, usually every two weeks, molded in their mold's, so it went through their automated equipment with out a hitch. I have no idea anymore just how many tons of steel we sold, but it was way up there but we only got a few cents over the going rate for it. All that was back in the early 1980's and there is no way we could work it the same way these days. Way to many regulations and such now.