Unknown residue

[Marcel]

This sludge formed, when I made a first pass with dilute hot nitric on "flatpacks". I was able to decant the blueish (coppernitrate) solution with a litte bit of silver in it, and put this sludge into another vessel. After that the solids where treated with AR and I later dropped some gold using SMB.
Now this sludge is still here with me.
Looking at the reactivity chart, this sludge may be tin and/or silvernitrate? How do I go on from here with this sludge, if it is even worth it?
It is a fluffy greyish material.
.

 

[rusty]

This sludge formed, when I made a first pass with dilute hot nitric on "flatpacks". I was able to decant the blueish (coppernitrate) solution with a litte bit of silver in it, and put this sludge into another vessel. After that the solids where treated with AR and I later dropped some gold using SMB.
Now this sludge is still here with me.
Looking at the reactivity chart, this sludge may be tin and/or silvernitrate? How do I go on from here with this sludge, if it is even worth it?
It is a fluffy greyish material.
.

Ammens to the rescue, chapter 3 - 2nd Edition, Testing, Identification and Familiarization

Silver ( Ag ) Mix a pinch of powdered assay with three times its volume with sodium carbonate ( baking soda ) place the mixture on the charcoal block.

Fuse the mixture using the blowpipe until a bright globule of silver is formed, it will remain bright after cooling.

Another test would be to -place a pinch of the assay into a test tube containing nitric acid and boil. Filter the solution then add a pinch of table salt. A white curdy precipitate of silver chloride will appear. Place some of the precipitate into the sunlight and shortly it will turn purple.

Silver chloride is very soluble in ammonia. (Note: acidify silver amine solutions or powders for safety never dry them before doing so, HCl added to a silver dissolved in ammonia will form a white precipitant of silver chloride again proving silver in solution)

when heated strongly under the blowpipe silver will covert into metallic silver. (it should be converted to a silver metal before attempting to melt silver chloride, otherwise your silver can go up in white smoke)

Tin ( Sn), mix some powdered assay with three times its volume of baking soda. Moisten the mixture and heat strongly on the charcoal block under the blowpipe, a small globule of tin will form.

Another test is to boil a pinch of the assay mixed with a pinch of zinc powder in a little dilute hydrochloric acid ( one part acid to three parts water ) . Bright, silvery tin will form.

Note: I edited the above post which originally read; (Silver chloride is very soluble in ammonia, when heated strongly under the blowpipe it will covert into metallic silver.) the reason I done this is because of the dangers of forming an explosive compound, I am not sure if this was copied from Ammens this way or if it was a typo?
Butcher

 

[butcher]

One thing I might try is to take a little of the powder in a test tube or small jar, and add some more dilute nitric, a little heat and see what happens, and see if it dissolves more metals into solution.

I am not sure what flat packs are, but it sounds like you think you could have tin in solution.

tin will form a gelatinous solution in nitric acid, your solution in the picture looks fairly clear like copper nitrate, you could have copper cementing silver and just need a little more nitric to pick up more metals.

if the added nitric does dissolve more of these powders, and the solution is blue you are dissolving more copper, also if it does dissolve more of these powders, check the solution for silver (using copper metal, HCl, or NaCl).

Another possibility that comes to mind is silver chloride, if you happened to have any chlorides (even from tap water) in your original nitric solution, if the powder does have silver chloride it would not dissolve in more nitric, so I would try another test on these powders, a small amount in a test tube washed well with boiling hot water, then allowed to sit in the bright sunshine to see if the powders darkened, or wash the powders well with water, decant, add some ammonia, (if it goes dark blue copper), if some dissolves decant, acidify the powders remaining, and add some HCl to decanted solution to see if silver precipitates.

Note: ammonia solutions and silver (or other metals), can become very dangerous if dried or heated strongly, never let solutions or powders dry when you have treated them with ammonia, always acidify the solutions or powders, as soon as possible and before drying, keep ammonium waste solutions separate from your other waste products, and treat it for waste separately.




but I am just guessing.

 

[rusty]

You would have to have read all of Chapter 3 to get an understanding of what is being taught here in identifying unknown substances.

For the record Ammen in this test is using an assay sized sample of silver chloride.

In future I shall not quote Ammen.