I have jewelry and e-scrap im looking to purify. Im going to do a hydrogen peroxide and muriatic acid bath, then muriatic acid and bleach bath. Can I do both e-scrap and jewelry together this way or not? If not how would be best to do it? Or is Aqua regin best for clean up of gold?
Purify Gold NEED HELP
- Thread starter jparker
- Start date
Help Support Gold Refining Forum:
Welcome to the forum!
The muriatic+peroxide method is only really suitable to plated goods.
Jewelry you must do as per Hoke (which is freely available as a copy, and I highly suggest you read it so that you understand the steps).
You can combine the gold foils from the plated escrap with the gold powder recovered after an inquart (melting karat jewelry with silver or copper, and parting in nitric acid yields a gold powder of 99% or so). That combined gold should then be dissolved in aqua regia (make sure you add the nitric in slowly). That is allowed to cool (crushed ice helps) to precipitate any silver, filtered, and then treated with sodium metabisulfite to precipitate fine gold. That gold is rinsed, dried, and then melted.
Hope that helps!
The muriatic+peroxide method is only really suitable to plated goods.
Jewelry you must do as per Hoke (which is freely available as a copy, and I highly suggest you read it so that you understand the steps).
You can combine the gold foils from the plated escrap with the gold powder recovered after an inquart (melting karat jewelry with silver or copper, and parting in nitric acid yields a gold powder of 99% or so). That combined gold should then be dissolved in aqua regia (make sure you add the nitric in slowly). That is allowed to cool (crushed ice helps) to precipitate any silver, filtered, and then treated with sodium metabisulfite to precipitate fine gold. That gold is rinsed, dried, and then melted.
Hope that helps!
rickbb
Well-known member
I would keep them separate.
As Lou has stated, the AP method is best suited for e-scrap, gold plated copper. Jewelry gold is alloyed with silver and copper and could have other metals as well that is not handled well in AP.
Hoke's book explains recovery and refining karat scrap very well. Keep in mind that it when it was written safety and environmental issues weren't stressed as much as today.
As Lou has stated, the AP method is best suited for e-scrap, gold plated copper. Jewelry gold is alloyed with silver and copper and could have other metals as well that is not handled well in AP.
Hoke's book explains recovery and refining karat scrap very well. Keep in mind that it when it was written safety and environmental issues weren't stressed as much as today.
jparker,
You have been given some good answers to your question, although there are many details you will need to learn, and understand for these answers to be helpful to you to recover and refine gold.
I suggest study of Hokes Book and the forum.
You have been given some good answers to your question, although there are many details you will need to learn, and understand for these answers to be helpful to you to recover and refine gold.
I suggest study of Hokes Book and the forum.
Hoke's book a must read for anyone wishing to learn the basic principles needed to learn to recover and refine gold, this book is especially helpful when dealing with Karat gold or jewelers scrap, and is helpful to understand the basic principles needed when dealing with just about any type of materials, and every type of recovery or refining of any type of material.
Understanding these basic principles is key to understanding the chemical and mechanical principles of recovery and refining, it can help to keep you from losing gold in a chemical mess, help you to keep from making a mess in the first place and help you to understand how to troubleshoot problems when they do happen.
This book you can find here all over the forum (as a free download), in the book section, and links under many members posts, the book can also be purchased (links have been given to some of the cheaper places to buy this book), or you can have one printed from the material provided by some of the helpful members here on the forum, which have made their own very professional looking book.
I do not know if English is your language, or if it is you are just new to the processes used in recovery and refining, but I had a little trouble understanding exactly what you asked.
With some types of gold plated material we may use the copper II chloride leach (sometimes called acid peroxide) or HCl/3% H2O2, this uses dilute hydrogen peroxide to begin the leach (bubbled air can be used to provide oxygen after initial reaction begins), this is a good method to dissolve copper (nickel) and undermine the gold foils, from the plated gold, this method is normally best where the copper is fairly thin, as in the case of some of the electronic scrap, it takes a long time to dissolve thicker copper items, and can the leach can be spoiled by base metals of he higher reactive metals in the reactivity series of metals, so for some material this leach may not be the best choice.
Fine gold powders and foils can be dissolved with other chemicals besides aqua regia, HCl and 30% H2O2 or the HCl/NaClO (sodium hypochlorite, household bleach), these are best used for fine thin gold, or powders, as larger thicker pieces of gold it would not work well.
Karat gold will need in-quartering to bring the karat down, normally with added silver in a melt, then poured into shot to get smaller pieces increasing surface area, then using diluted nitric acid to remove silver from the gold.
This is done because of the silver content in the karat gold, in aqua regia the silver builds a crust or shell that protects the gold from being attacked by the aqua regia, and the gold would protect the silver from being dissolved in the nitric acid.
In-quartering solves these problems.
Aqua regia, is tricky to use (Hokes is a good place to learn the basics), and the forum will also help you learn to use it best, learning how to use minimum nitric acid, and the best methods of de-NOxing the solution, spending time studying the forum can help you understand this acid solution better, it may help you from losing your gold in a boil-over, or help you understand better how to get your gold back out of this acid mixture, learning to test for values in solution is a tool every refiner needs to understand well Hokes and the forum will help you in this area.
The guided tour found in the general chat section will hep you get aquianted with the processes used by many on the forum.
This is an art, skill, and science that take s much study to learn, and to build your skill, luckily the forum provides all the information we need to learn these skills.
Welcome to the forum.
Understanding these basic principles is key to understanding the chemical and mechanical principles of recovery and refining, it can help to keep you from losing gold in a chemical mess, help you to keep from making a mess in the first place and help you to understand how to troubleshoot problems when they do happen.
This book you can find here all over the forum (as a free download), in the book section, and links under many members posts, the book can also be purchased (links have been given to some of the cheaper places to buy this book), or you can have one printed from the material provided by some of the helpful members here on the forum, which have made their own very professional looking book.
I do not know if English is your language, or if it is you are just new to the processes used in recovery and refining, but I had a little trouble understanding exactly what you asked.
With some types of gold plated material we may use the copper II chloride leach (sometimes called acid peroxide) or HCl/3% H2O2, this uses dilute hydrogen peroxide to begin the leach (bubbled air can be used to provide oxygen after initial reaction begins), this is a good method to dissolve copper (nickel) and undermine the gold foils, from the plated gold, this method is normally best where the copper is fairly thin, as in the case of some of the electronic scrap, it takes a long time to dissolve thicker copper items, and can the leach can be spoiled by base metals of he higher reactive metals in the reactivity series of metals, so for some material this leach may not be the best choice.
Fine gold powders and foils can be dissolved with other chemicals besides aqua regia, HCl and 30% H2O2 or the HCl/NaClO (sodium hypochlorite, household bleach), these are best used for fine thin gold, or powders, as larger thicker pieces of gold it would not work well.
Karat gold will need in-quartering to bring the karat down, normally with added silver in a melt, then poured into shot to get smaller pieces increasing surface area, then using diluted nitric acid to remove silver from the gold.
This is done because of the silver content in the karat gold, in aqua regia the silver builds a crust or shell that protects the gold from being attacked by the aqua regia, and the gold would protect the silver from being dissolved in the nitric acid.
In-quartering solves these problems.
Aqua regia, is tricky to use (Hokes is a good place to learn the basics), and the forum will also help you learn to use it best, learning how to use minimum nitric acid, and the best methods of de-NOxing the solution, spending time studying the forum can help you understand this acid solution better, it may help you from losing your gold in a boil-over, or help you understand better how to get your gold back out of this acid mixture, learning to test for values in solution is a tool every refiner needs to understand well Hokes and the forum will help you in this area.
The guided tour found in the general chat section will hep you get aquianted with the processes used by many on the forum.
This is an art, skill, and science that take s much study to learn, and to build your skill, luckily the forum provides all the information we need to learn these skills.
Welcome to the forum.
The RTV probably, the silicon itself, no.
not going to hold up.
Suggest 5 gallon bucket of HDPE, or preferably, glass.
Cheers,
Suggest 5 gallon bucket of HDPE, or preferably, glass.
Cheers,
Plexiglass will fail in aqua regia
http://www.eplastics.com/Plastic/Plastics_Library/Chemical-Resistance-of-Plexiglass-Acrylic
So will the polyester or epoxy resin in fiberglass. I know ehow isn't usually the most reliable reference but it's the only one I could find that discussed aqua regia.
http://www.ehow.com/info_12185409_dissolves-fiberglass-resin.html
http://www.eplastics.com/Plastic/Plastics_Library/Chemical-Resistance-of-Plexiglass-Acrylic
So will the polyester or epoxy resin in fiberglass. I know ehow isn't usually the most reliable reference but it's the only one I could find that discussed aqua regia.
http://www.ehow.com/info_12185409_dissolves-fiberglass-resin.html
will the fumes from aqua regent attacking the metals eat threw plexi or silicon adhesive? Im using glass containers for the liquids and the bottom of it is going to be made in HDPE. and just so you know my boyfriend is texting me from work and im just asking what he is telling me to ask so sorry if its a little confusing
Yes, it will eat through plexiglass and silicone.
HDPE= high density polyethylene, what five gallon buckets are made from
Glass, teflon, tantalum, ceramics long term use
HDPE short term use (if not hot and concentrated, can use long time).
HDPE= high density polyethylene, what five gallon buckets are made from
Glass, teflon, tantalum, ceramics long term use
HDPE short term use (if not hot and concentrated, can use long time).
rickbb
Well-known member
Sighs heavily. :|
A
Anonymous
Guest
rickbb said:
*hugs Rick*
spaceships said:
Lol, yes, this is a ridiculous thread to read!
Parker,
Tell your boyfriend a couple of things, please, especially as it seems he is intent on not following the direction provided to him up to this point. Those things would be:
1. You, his girlfriend/boyfriend have been very understanding so far, but if he intends on refining at home, he is not going to be anywhere in your house with any of those life-threatening chemicals (yes, even aqua REGIA, please note the spelling).
2. That you aren't going to allow him to store those chemicals in your home, at all.
3. That you have been warned that the chemicals he is going to be using have very toxic fumes that can permanently damage you, him, and any children the two of you might have.
4. That there is no mask that will protect you from those types of fumes.
5. That those fumes can linger for a long time, should he try to protest points 1-4.
6. That with a few weeks of dedicated study of Hoke, that he could operate safely and go after that gold that is currently depressing his common sense.
7. That there are members of this board who have been permanently injured by those fumes.
8. That you, as his significant other, love him and want to see him live to be a ripe old age.
Thanks!
bswartzwelder
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2011
- Messages
- 660
Andy Williams. Great answer. I was wondering how much longer this thread was going to be allowed to go on before someone else spoke up.
JParker. Start studying the "required reading" on the forum. Many of your questions have been answered there many times over. Do a little of the work for yourself, otherwise, you're just wasting the time of the forum members. READ ALL THE ANNOUNCEMENTS AT THE TOP OF EVERY BOARD. They were put there for a reason. Maybe in six months, if you study hard, you'll be ready to start asking questions.
JParker. Start studying the "required reading" on the forum. Many of your questions have been answered there many times over. Do a little of the work for yourself, otherwise, you're just wasting the time of the forum members. READ ALL THE ANNOUNCEMENTS AT THE TOP OF EVERY BOARD. They were put there for a reason. Maybe in six months, if you study hard, you'll be ready to start asking questions.
