scrapparts
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2016
- Messages
- 142
Hello members,
I've been studying the forum threads, reading the threads and Hoke's book and processing gold and silver. This thread is about some silver contacts that I acquired a few months ago. It is 524g.
524g Silver Contacts
I dissolved the silver with Nitric Acid, filtered the solution and then I added table salt to drop the silver. At first all the sale went to the bottom of the beaker. I felt like the solution was too concentrated, so I transferred the solution into a 2 gallon bucket, then added some distilled water to the bucket and the solution became a white cloud. I added more salt until there was no more clouding.
After letting everything settle, I poured off the solution and this is what I had left.
After rinsing silver powder.
I believe this is where I screwed up at first.
I first used corn syrup but I wasn't getting any reaction. The first time I did this same process, I used the Sodium Hydroxide FIRST, and then the corn syrup, which gave both additions a reaction. But, by adding the corn syrup first, I wasn't getting any reaction at all. I used half a bottle of corn syrup I had, then I added some more from another bottle I just bought. Still, no reaction.
Since I felt I was using way too much corn syrup, I started using the Sodium Hydroxide and the reaction started. I kept doing it until the reaction of the Sodium /hydroxide ceased to show any reaction. I then let the solution settle for a few minutes.
And this is where I screwed up for the second time.
After letting it sit for a few minutes, I poured off the liquid, and then I put everything in a pyrex glass baking pan.
Without you having to ask me, no,.. my silly self did NOT rinse the silver to get rid of everything after the cemetation. I just poured off the top liquid and went to heat it in the bake dish. I know better, but somehow I forgot that part.
This is how the silver came out after drying it and stirring the dry powder around.
Silver powder after drying it and taking some out to melt.
As you can in the picture below, the silver is melting, but the problem is that it has too much syrup in it because when I put it in the melting dish, everything turns into a soupy substance, but the silver collects (sometimes) and I have to pour off the syrup because it actually boils in the dish without melting or dissolving away, using a MAPP torch.
Now, with all of that said, I'm wondering if I should take the powder and put it in a beaker with some distilled water and boil off any and all stickiness still on the powered silver? And then dry it out and melt from there?
I was also thinking about taking the pieces that I get to melt as a solid, collect it, and then put all the solids together and melt is as either corn flakes or into a mold. The silver is melting from this powder, but it's leaving too much sugar, gluey surface around it, like it's borax or such, which it isn't borax.
I ordered 3 more silica melting dishes, because I broke the one I was using as I let the silver stick to it and I tried to pull it off and broke the crucible.
Let this be a lesson for newbies and anyone else wanting to refine. Study, study and study even more. I dropped the ball on this batch, BUT, nothing is lost. I melted around 70g of silver so far, and it doesn't even show a difference in the powder that's left to do. I'm confident I'll get close to 524g when I'm done.
TIP: If you are going to use the salt, sodium hydroxide and syrup method.... do this.. in this order...
salt (if the solution doesn't turn white or the salt drops straight to the bottom, you probably need to add water)
sodium hydroxide
syrup.
When I did do this method before, and doing it the way I am suggesting, I got a reaction with both the sodium hydroxide and corn syrup. But since I did the corn syrup first, I didn't get ANY reaction at all.
Anyway, I just wanted to reach out to the team here and hope some others can benefit from this thread. I'm not at a lost at all or stumped as to what to do, but curious
I am always pleased to learn from here. It's the best website on the Internet.
scrapparts
scrapparts.
I've been studying the forum threads, reading the threads and Hoke's book and processing gold and silver. This thread is about some silver contacts that I acquired a few months ago. It is 524g.
524g Silver Contacts
I dissolved the silver with Nitric Acid, filtered the solution and then I added table salt to drop the silver. At first all the sale went to the bottom of the beaker. I felt like the solution was too concentrated, so I transferred the solution into a 2 gallon bucket, then added some distilled water to the bucket and the solution became a white cloud. I added more salt until there was no more clouding.
After letting everything settle, I poured off the solution and this is what I had left.
After rinsing silver powder.
I believe this is where I screwed up at first.
I first used corn syrup but I wasn't getting any reaction. The first time I did this same process, I used the Sodium Hydroxide FIRST, and then the corn syrup, which gave both additions a reaction. But, by adding the corn syrup first, I wasn't getting any reaction at all. I used half a bottle of corn syrup I had, then I added some more from another bottle I just bought. Still, no reaction.
Since I felt I was using way too much corn syrup, I started using the Sodium Hydroxide and the reaction started. I kept doing it until the reaction of the Sodium /hydroxide ceased to show any reaction. I then let the solution settle for a few minutes.
And this is where I screwed up for the second time.
After letting it sit for a few minutes, I poured off the liquid, and then I put everything in a pyrex glass baking pan.
Without you having to ask me, no,.. my silly self did NOT rinse the silver to get rid of everything after the cemetation. I just poured off the top liquid and went to heat it in the bake dish. I know better, but somehow I forgot that part.
This is how the silver came out after drying it and stirring the dry powder around.
Silver powder after drying it and taking some out to melt.
As you can in the picture below, the silver is melting, but the problem is that it has too much syrup in it because when I put it in the melting dish, everything turns into a soupy substance, but the silver collects (sometimes) and I have to pour off the syrup because it actually boils in the dish without melting or dissolving away, using a MAPP torch.
Now, with all of that said, I'm wondering if I should take the powder and put it in a beaker with some distilled water and boil off any and all stickiness still on the powered silver? And then dry it out and melt from there?
I was also thinking about taking the pieces that I get to melt as a solid, collect it, and then put all the solids together and melt is as either corn flakes or into a mold. The silver is melting from this powder, but it's leaving too much sugar, gluey surface around it, like it's borax or such, which it isn't borax.
I ordered 3 more silica melting dishes, because I broke the one I was using as I let the silver stick to it and I tried to pull it off and broke the crucible.
Let this be a lesson for newbies and anyone else wanting to refine. Study, study and study even more. I dropped the ball on this batch, BUT, nothing is lost. I melted around 70g of silver so far, and it doesn't even show a difference in the powder that's left to do. I'm confident I'll get close to 524g when I'm done.
TIP: If you are going to use the salt, sodium hydroxide and syrup method.... do this.. in this order...
salt (if the solution doesn't turn white or the salt drops straight to the bottom, you probably need to add water)
sodium hydroxide
syrup.
When I did do this method before, and doing it the way I am suggesting, I got a reaction with both the sodium hydroxide and corn syrup. But since I did the corn syrup first, I didn't get ANY reaction at all.
Anyway, I just wanted to reach out to the team here and hope some others can benefit from this thread. I'm not at a lost at all or stumped as to what to do, but curious
I am always pleased to learn from here. It's the best website on the Internet.
scrapparts
scrapparts.