reduction of copper waste

[solar_plasma]

Has anyone tried to process the copper waste in practice by:

Cu++ + 2 NaOH -> Cu(OH)2

and

Cu(OH)2 --heating---> CuO + H2O

and finally

2 CuO + C -> 2 Cu + CO2

(other base metals like Ni and Fe reduces probably similarly and may form an alloy with the Cu(?))

...since I've got a forge with air blow and a large steel crucible (about a gallon) from my old dad, I would like to try this in my summer holiday.

 

[butcher]

It will work, but why make the hydroxide,from your copper solutions, and then go to the trouble of converting it back to metal before you melt it, when you can cement it out of your waste solutions a copper metal (using iron), which will most likely give you a better grade of copper, if most of your waste solutions are like mine they would have other base metals in solution that would form hydroxides, which ever method you you use to get it to copper, or hydroxide, you will want to keep the copper metal or hydroxide, from air so that it does not oxidize to carbonates of copper, keeping it covered with water until you are ready to dry and heat for the melt, carbon in your flux will be very important, whether from an oxide or from copper metal powders, you can add flour, sugar, charcoal, or other carbon source to your flux recipe, the copper will try to oxidize in the high temperature of the melt, even worse if your flame is oxidizing, even if you use copper metal powders, the carbon will be needed absorb the oxygen from your copper oxide and your furnace forming CO or CO2 gas, this way the copper will melt as a metal and not burn up as an oxide, the carbon in your flux will help to reduce the copper oxide to copper metal in your melt.

I have never melted copper in a steel crucible, I would probably work with a clay crucible,, I am not sure How the steel crucible would work.

Sounds like a great project for summer. maybe you do could do a documentary for the forum.

 

[solar_plasma]

It will work, but why make the hydroxide,from your copper solutions, and then go to the trouble of converting it back....................... maybe you could do a documentary for the forum.

I just thougt about another easy and maybe faster way to make metal from the toxical waste beyond electrolysis and cementation. And find some reason to use that giant steel crucible. :lol:

Yes, ofcourse, I will like to document it.

 

[Geo]

im planning on trying an experiment with electrolysis to remove copper from used solutions. i have been neutralizing and then evaporating to solids.these i place in a metal paint can and turn it in to the landfill on chemical collection day.up to five gallons disposed of for free if you prove you live in the county the dump is in.
i have been thinking about using a red clay flower pot (without the hole) to place my cathode in.this should trap any solid metal copper that plates out.the clay should be porous enough to allow the copper chloride through. i have a 24V power supply at 2 amps.it should do a gallon of solution pretty quickly.

 

[Tinker Terry]

im planning on trying an experiment with electrolysis to remove copper from used solutions. i have been neutralizing and then evaporating to solids.these i place in a metal paint can and turn it in to the landfill on chemical collection day.up to five gallons disposed of for free if you prove you live in the county the dump is in.
i have been thinking about using a red clay flower pot (without the hole) to place my cathode in.this should trap any solid metal copper that plates out.the clay should be porous enough to allow the copper chloride through. i have a 24V power supply at 2 amps.it should do a gallon of solution pretty quickly.

I have been expreimenting with this myself. Read Extractive_Metallurgy_of_Copper_-_G._W._Davenport[1].pdf
Gives you a lot of information. Pay particular attention to the process used to recycle their electolyte by using "Electrowinning" Can't find the link where I downloaded the book from but it was a free download. Google should find it for you quite easily.

 

[goldsilverpro]

It will work, but why make the hydroxide,from your copper solutions, and then go to the trouble of converting it back....................... maybe you could do a documentary for the forum.

I just thougt about another easy and maybe faster way to make metal from the toxical waste beyond electrolysis and cementation. And find some reason to use that giant steel crucible. :lol:

Yes, ofcourse, I will like to document it.

According to the Cu-Fe phase diagram, you will get alloying at the Cu melting point and higher. I wouldn't use a steel crucible.

 

[Alchymist]

It will work, but why make the hydroxide,from your copper solutions, and then go to the trouble of converting it back....................... maybe you could do a documentary for the forum.

I just thougt about another easy and maybe faster way to make metal from the toxical waste beyond electrolysis and cementation. And find some reason to use that giant steel crucible. :lol:

Yes, ofcourse, I will like to document it.

According to the Cu-Fe phase diagram, you will get alloying at the Cu melting point and higher. I wouldn't use a steel crucible.

I agree with GSP. Do not try to melt Cu in a steel crucible. It will eat (alloy with) the steel very fast. You can use steel up to Al and Mg melting (about 660 °C), but it will not last for long. Personally I would only use it up to Zn melting (419 °C).

 

[kjavanb123]

All,

Tried to drop the copper from copper nitrate solution, here is the picture, solution on the left is copper nitrate, on the right is after adding lye to raise the pH.


I assume this most be copper hydroxide, so I let it dry then incinerate it maybe?

Thanks
Kevin

 

[solar_plasma]

The green one may be nickel or is copper hydroxide a little soluable? Decant off the clear green solution and raise the pH, - I guess soon will the nickel hydoxide precipitate then. Though and may be better to harvest the nickel by electrolysis, - pure nickel and H2SO4 in the solution.

I would keep it for making fresh CuSO4.

What to do with the nickel I don't know yet...but nickel has a nice spot price.

 

[kjavanb123]

I never used Nickel in the process of extracting silver from keyboard mylar, they are pure silver, then dropped with copper bar.

Regards,
Kevin

 

[MysticColby]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solubility_table

Copper(I) hydroxide will dissolve in water up to 0.0000008055% (g/100ml)
Copper(II) hydroxide will dissolve in water up to 0.000001722%

that's practically the definition of insoluble.
0.0000008055g = 0.0008055mg = 0.8055µg = 805.5ng
it would almost be easier to tell you how many molecules would be in solution than grams. well... maybe not: 3,390,058,852,362,150

 

[butcher]

How much copper will remain in solution has a lot to do with the pH, at around pH 9 copper has the lowest solubility.

 

[NoIdea]

Morning All - i have been thinking about this for some time now, though I have yet to put it into practice.

The aluminium from electrolytic capacitors, after pyrolysis, and sodium hydroxide produce hydrogen. The hydrogen can be fed into a heated reactor containing powdered copper sulphate. End product, nano-copper powder and sulphuric acid.

Just throwing out an idea for all to think about.

Cheers

Deano

 

[Geo]

HEY, Deano, where have you been buddy? been almost a month, i thought you may have gotten lost.

i use scrap steel. im saving the copper powder in a covered drum. i add a little clean oil to the powder when i add more. it keeps it from oxidizing and i figure when im ready to melt it, ill just filter out the oil.

 

[NoIdea]

HEY, Deano, where have you been buddy? been almost a month, i thought you may have gotten lost.

Hey Geo, Yah it's been awhile, winter here, time for prunning and what nots.

Time i should get back into things.

Ill keep in touch as best as i can, i need some gold 8)

Deano