Smb together with copperas

[niks neims]

Hi everyone
Don't want to get yelled at so lets say my question is purely theoretical ...
What would happen if one would use both agents to precipitate one batch of AuCl in AR? Is there some dangerous side-reaction to look out for? Is there some unusual contamination to be expected? Or is it just precipitation as usual? Lets theoreticaly say that AR was heavy with nitric acid and also after first adding copperas and then SMB in the end stannous test was negative. Theoreticaly.

And of course it is very hard to imagine situation where it could eaven happen so lets not try to rationalise it or debate practicality of it... Lets leave it at theoretical

P. S. Sorry about spelling guys, writing from my Phone

 

[anachronism]

No there's nothing drastically wrong with it I've done it myself on occasion. Using two precipitants together isn't often necessary but sometimes it can be helpful. I often use SMB on a solution and get the last touch of gold out of it using Ascorbic.

 

[niks neims]

Thank you man
I also calmed down today after siphoning off the solution and finding settled black muddy powder (gold, presumably).
Everything went better than expected

Edit:spelling

 

[anachronism]

My pleasure.

Enjoy the journey.

Jon

 

[butcher]

When dissolving metals in acids, the acid oxidizes the atoms of the metal (the metal atom lost electrons), and the acid is reduced (gain of electrons), forming salt of the former metal and acid. The solution contains these ionic salts in solution.
In order to precipitate gold all we need to do is (remove oxidizing agent in solution , nitric for example that will keep oxidizing the gold (which is taking electrons from the metals), and use a reducing agent to precipitate gold (Copperas, SMB,SO2_(g), zinc, Most metals higher in the reactivity-series than gold, CuCl, oxalic acid, Na2SO3,formic acid...). The reducing agent donates electrons to gold ions which form gold atoms which clump up and gain weight and fall out of solution as clumps of powdered gold metal atoms. In the act of reducing the gold(giving back gold ions electrons) the reducing agent gives up electrons to the gold ions (lossing electrons itself) the reducing agent is oxidized in the process, either becoming an ionic salt itself or oxidized to higher oxidation state.

Although we can use two reducing agent like SMB and copperas at the same time without disaster, we may not be able to get by with this with other combinations of reducing agents, where they could possibly react with each other producing unwanted side effects, gases, or undisireable reactions... Example using a reducing agent which can have more than one oxidation states could reduce the gold and have enough oxidation power left to react with the other (oxidized) reducing agent...