Gold Recovery Correctly

3/1/2019 Gold Recovery Correctly: 12 Steps
Gold Recovery Correctly

By Railes in TechnologyElectronics 1.056.424 568 304
Published Aug 7th, 2011 Download Favorite
By Railes
Follow
More by
the
author:
About: I eat food, sometimes I'm funny. More About Railes »
I will detail a SAFE process of turning old electronic parts into little round lumps of
pure gold. There are many tutorials that claim to offer methods of gold recovery
such as "Cupellation"*. These processes are DANGEROUS and put the user at the
risk of inhaling vaporized metals.
No over the counter breather will protect you from these dangers; Only lab grade
isolated breathing systems can protect against metal vapors.
********************************** SEE HEALTH HAZARD ON STEP
6***************************************
https://www.instructables.com/id/TRASH-TO-TREASURE/ 1/25
**** a Side cautionary note, This process is not suitable to purify Panned Gold or
KARAT (Gold Alloyed with silver.) This Guide is best suited for gold plated or pure
gold object.
THIS SHOULD ALSO NEVER BE ATTEMPTED INDOORS.
*Cupellation is a refining process in metallurgy, where ores or alloyed metals are

treated under high temperatures and controlled operations to separate noble metals,
like gold and silver, from base metals like lead, copper, zinc, arsenic, antimony or
bismuth, present in the ore. The process is based on the principle that precious
metals do not oxidise or react chemically, unlike the base metals; so when they are
heated at high temperatures, the precious metals remain apart and the others react
forming slags or other compounds
Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download
Step 1: SAFETY FIRST, Always.
In this instructable you will be working with basic house hold chemicals. By
themselves these chemicals can be fairly harmless. The combination of such
chemical which will be presented in this instructable can be EXTREMELY

hazardous; By such there are a couple of safety items which are not Optional. THE
FOLLOW ITEMS ARE REQUIRED. FAILURE TO OBTAIN THESE ITEMS BEFORE
HAND CAN POSSIBLY COMPROMISE YOUR HEALTH.
Item # 1.
Breathing equipment. You will need a chemical mask rated AT LEAST as a P100. If
you dont know what a P100 rating means It is your responsibility to yourself to find
out.
Item # 2
Heavy duty Gloves. pvc or rubber is fine, do not use Latex or Nitrile gloves.
Item # 3
Safety Glasses. Any pair will work as long as It is safety rated and solvent rated.
Step 2: Equipment Needed.
Helpfull items which can make doing these experiments easier.
1. Borosil glass labware.

2. 2 1/2 gallon bucket.
3. a 1 gallon bucket with holes drilled in the bottom. - to be used as a strainer.

4. a 60 ounce pickle Jar
5. Coffee filters
6. Filter holder from a coffee machine.
7. Spray bottle.
8. Mini scale with the ability to measure Grams and Oz.
9. some pipettes and test tube.
Step 3: Chemicals Required.
I have used a number of chemicals these I have found to be the most widely
available.
1 gallon of Clorox Bleach. or Sodium hypochlorate at 6%

2. Muriatic Acid 34% HCL ~ Baume.
3. Hydrogen Peroxide - 3% but no greater then 5%
4. Stumpout by Bonide. or Sodium bisulfate - 99.9% as specified in the Msds or
Sodium Meta Bisulfite.
You cannot substitue with these chemicals trying to do so will no give the required
reactions.
Step 4: Selecting Materials to Be Recovered.
I was taught by the method of Crap in Crap out. You want your materials to be as
clean as possible with the least Amount of Garbage as possible.
Gold fingers are typically found on PCI cards, ISA cards, or on Memory
sims/dimms/etc. They create the corrosion free connection between the computer
and the expansion card.
This process can also be used to recover gold from CPU such as Pentium Pro, or
Cyrix or older 486 and lower generation chips.
Step 5: The First Chemical Bath.
Objective of this first chemical bath is to remove a large majority the base metals,
Such as nickle, zinc and copper.
After cleanly removing your plated sections of computer parts. remove any visible
capacitors transistors, or other components. be sure to also remove any steel or iron
parts attached. These metals can foul the reaction causing poor results.
Tools
100 ML beaker, 1 gallon bucket, 2 1/2 gallon bucket.
Chemicals
Muratic acid, and hydrogen peroxide.
Materials you are looking to recover.
First step, place your 1 gallon stainer bucket, into your 2 1/2 gallon wash bucket. But
first place your parts to be recovered inside your 1 gallon strainer bucket. as
pictured.
Add enough muratic acid to cover your fingers about 1 cm above your materials.
keep track of how many MLs are added. you want to keep your waste Acids to a
minimum. second. To activate the solution you want to add your Hydrogen
peroxide 3 - 5% solution in a 2 to 1 ratio. two parts muratic acid to one part
hydrogen peroxide.
after the Peroxide has been added to your muratic acid the mixture should start to
bubble, and the base metals should begin to dissolve. At this point you should be
wearing your safety gear because a few unfriendly fumes are being released.
This process can take up to 24 - 48 hours. this works best at the temperatures of
80 - 90 F.
When this has been completed you will see a batch of gold foils floating in your now
dark green acid.
Step 6: Filtering the Gold Foils.
Items required
coffee filters
filter holder
60oz pickle jar. or glass container large enough to contain waste acids.
Simply Poor the contents of the two gallon bucket into the pickle jar using the coffee
filters to catch any foils that are floating on the surface of the acid. Once you have
pored off all the acid you will be left with a pile similar to what is in the picture. scoop
these from the bucket into another container for future processing.
Congratulation you are about 50% finished. **********
************************************* HEALTH
WARNING ***************************************
Melting at this stage may lead to the following health hazards.
ZINC
Inhalation of zinc oxide fumes can occur when welding or cutting on zinc-coated
metals. Exposure to these fumes is known to cause metal fume fever. Symptoms of
metal fume fever are very similar to those of common influenza. They include fever
(rarely exceeding 102o F), chills, nausea, dryness of the throat, cough, fatigue, and
general weakness and aching of the head and body. The victim may sweat profusely
for a few hours, after which the body temperature begins to return to normal. The
symptoms of metal fume fever have rarely, if ever, lasted beyond 24 hours. The
subject can then appear to be more susceptible to the onset of this condition on
Mondays or on weekdays following a holiday than they are on other days.
BERYLLIUM
Beryllium is sometimes used as a alloying element with copper and other base
metals. Acute exposure to high concentrations of beryllium can result in chemical
pneumonia. Long-term exposure can result in shortness of breath, chronic cough,
and significant weight loss, accompanied by fatigue and general weakness.
MERCURY
Mercury compounds are used to coat metals to prevent rust or inhibit foliage growth
(marine paints). Under the intense heat of the arc or gas flame, mercury vapors will
be produced. Exposure to these vapors may produce stomach pain, diarrhea, kidney
damage, or respiratory failure. Long-term exposure may produce tremors, emotional
instability, and hearing damage.
LEAD
Inhalation and ingestion of lead oxide fumes and other lead compounds will cause
lead poisoning. Symptoms include metallic taste in the mouth, loss of appetite,
nausea, abdominal cramps, and insomnia. In time, anemia and general weakness,
chiefly in the muscles of the wrists, develop. Lead adversely affects the brain, central
nervous system, circulatory system, reproductive system, kidneys, and muscles.
CADMIUM
Cadmium is used frequently as a rust-preventive coating on steel and also as an

alloying element. Acute exposures to high concentrations or cadmium fumes can
produce severe lung irritation, pulmonary edema, and in some cases, death. Long-
term exposure to low levels of cadmium in air can result in emphysema (a disease
affecting the ability of the lung to absorb oxygen) and can damage the kidneys.
Cadmium is classified by OSHA, NIOSH, and EPA as a potential human carcinogen
Disposing of your waste acids.
Place your acid in a separate container, I choose used 2 liter or 3 liter bottles, Label
these bottles as CLCu2 with a black sharpie marker. under that write may also
contain trace amounts of NICKLE and ZINC, BERYLLIUM, CADMIUM and LEAD.
You can take these items to your local hazard roundup or recycle your acids with a
method I plan on detailing in another instructable.
DO NOT dump your acids down the drain or on the ground. it is IMPORTANT to9/25be
https://www.instructables.com/id/TRASH-TO-TREASURE/
responsible with wastes.
Step 7: Creating Stannous Cloride.
These foils are about 80% gold, and copper 20%
In order to reach a higher level of purity a second bath is required. For that we will
need to create a test Chemical called Stannous cloride or Sn CL2
This metal is essential for Identify how much gold is left in our 2nd chemical bath.
For this you will need 1 beaker, and about 30 ML or muratic acid. 1 gram of tin
metal powder or shot. Weigh it out using your Scale.
it takes appox 4 hours to completely dissolve the tin metal shot. or instantly for the
powder.
The resulting solution should be bright yellow.
Step 8: The Second Chemical Bath Refining Your Gold Foils.
THIS STEP SHOULD NEVER BE ATTEMPTED without your CHEMICAL MASK.
For this chemical bath I will be reproducing the process on small scale. this is by far
the most hazardous step and with the most reactive wastes.
For this step I am going to use a 100 ml beaker a portion of recovered foils, about 3
grams.
I will be using Muratic acid, and clorox.
I will be adding only enough Muratic acid to cover my 3 grams of foils, Using a
Pipette I will slowly add Clorox until all of my foils have dissolved. you can use a
glass rod to help felicitate the process.
After your foils have dissolved the resulting solution will be a deep golden yellow
maybe a little orange in color.
it may be desirable to filter your solution with the coffee filters 1 more time,
depending on if little bits of green plastic from the board found their way into this
step.
Step 9: Filtering Particles.
After Dissolving ALL the foils you might notice a small amount of inductors, caps and
transistors that wormed their way into the final process. This is normal.
Simply Filter again using a long neck funnel and a tall flask. The resulting solution
should be a Deep and bright golden yellow..
Step 10: Testing Your Solution for Gold.
Ok, this is the exciting part and one where you get to see some real chemistry at
work..
you will need:
Stannous cloride created earlier, 1 coffee filter paper, 2 pipettes or glass droppers.
Simply place 1 dot of recovered solution on a piece of filer paper, Next place one
drop of your stannous cloride on the other. The resulting reaction should turn purple.
If your did CONGRADS you have created AURIC Cloride Or Aucl3 a gold bearing
solution. If your test drop didnt turn purple, add a little more tin to your stannous
cloride and heat gently with a alcohol burner and BOROsiicate test tube. Repeat
Test.
depending on how much gold is in your solution it may appear black.
Step 11: Recovering Your Gold.
Recovering your gold in solution is one of the Coolest steps.
Whats needed, a plastic spoon, and the sodium Bisulfate or Stumpout.
Simply add very small amounts of stumpout, Your Mixture should start to look like
the pictures I have provided. This is caused by the SO2 Gas which acts to chemically
displace the gold in solution.
When the reaction has finished you will have driven out a majority of the chlorine,
and replaced it with Sulfur. Any gold which was trapped in the solution has now be
come a brown precipitate at the bottom of your beaker.
Retest with Stannous chloride, if your reaction still turns purple you need to add more
stumpout.
It will take appox 10 hours for the gold to competely settle, the solution should be
clear at this point.
Step 12: Melting
OK this is the last stop, At this point you have drained off the last ot the solution with
your pipette the bottom of your beaker should be coated with what looks like dried
cinnamon.
THATS PURE GOLD. Put that powder onto a fire brick that has been treated with a
flux material like borax. Melt the borax till it becomes glassy. Apply your powder,
Heat with a MAPP torch or something more aggressive, careful not to blow your
powder off the firebrick.
TADA Pure 24Karat gold.
TO date I have used this process to recover approx 1 pound of gold from computer
chips and the like.
Enjoy....
Railes.
P.S. For more information about this process Visit this website.
http://goldrefiningforum.com/ This is a community of some of the brightest people I

have ever had the pleasure of speaking with.
Share
ElmakatyA made it!
Did you make this project? Share it with us!
I Made It!
Recommendations
Vacuum Tube Lamp - Sound Reactive

https://www.instructables.com/id/TRASH-TO-TREASURE/
by lonesoulsurfer in Technology 16/25
$1 PCB Christmas Tree

by loboat in Electronics
Resistor Organizer and Storage

by lonesoulsurfer in Electronics
Large Motors Class

10,754 Enrolled
Add Tip
Ask Question
Post Comment
We have a be nice policy.

Please be positive and constructive.
Add Images Post
304 Discussions
Reply Upvote
klamp54 6 years ago on Will this work with gold on magnetic based parts ?
I have some old glass resistors from 70's, a few
pounds anyway, I'd like to know before I mess it up.
2 replies
We have never done this before . Answer Upvote

AliciaW41 Question 8 weeks ago on Step 2
But we got a lot of computer parts
for gold recovery . We used
hydrogen peroxide and muratic
acid . We let it process for 12
hours. When we filtered it this is
what we got. On the filter ? It's all
gray and it don't look like any
gold flakes at all and the stuff we
put in look like. The gold was
pulled off. What do we do. ? I've
ordered nitric acid and the sidium
bisulfite to use to try to recover
our gold. Thank God we only.
Used ic chips and small stuff
from boards . We have majority
left here to do. I like your
process. Please someone help me
fix this gray mess and get my
gold out. Thank you very much.
100years2late Question 3 months ago on Im working with gold ore that ive Answer Upvote
crushed and paned. Will this

method still work? Should i go with

the Aaqua regia?
i found sodium hypochlorate %4.2 . Answer Upvote

SarpÖ1 Question 4 months ago on Step 3
will it work
how can we decided the Answer Upvote

harshad kevadiya Question 5 months ago on Step 5
chemical composition
inside the gold recovery
Sir my solution color like dark Answer Upvote

SunnyB40 Question 8 months ago on Step 7
green i use aqua regia and urea
after then smb but gold not
setteld down pls tell me what can
i do sir
1 answer
Ifeyeh8edme 8 months ago I have about a hundred 1/16th scale nascar cars Reply Upvote
that are gold plated will this method work to

remove the gold from them?
Powersb 6 years ago on Step 11 Really interesting procedure (never seen Reply Upvote
anything like this). Can you use the same

procedure for pins containing gold? Can I use
potassium metabisulfite instead of sodium
Bisulfite (i cant find any)?
15 replies
CharlesS246 a year ago I messed up and need help. I lost internet after first Reply Upvote
bath and couldnt remember. So i placed what was in

filter like gold foils and other stuff in a ceramic bowl
with some borax mixed in and hit it with mapp gas
torch resulting in a clump of what looks like black
glass! Is it all lost or can i still recover my gold?
1 reply
MarkoK25 3 years ago Okey, I add SMB to the ''Yellow solution that Reply Upvote
contains gold'' and it went collorless, I left it over the

night and nothing. What I should do now?! Did I add
too much SMB, or it is because I need to heat it ?
Please help. Thanks.
1 reply
Capicayo a year ago Hello. I like your version. I have two questions. Can I Reply Upvote
use the typical

tin metal that I use for soldering to create the Stannous
cloride? The second you have permission to laugh!
A few years ago I had bought a kit in which the steps I
followed led me to create something called poor's man
soup. On these days cleaning I found the bottle and it is
light brown-white, not translucent color. like latte. Is
still there any way to recover the gold? There are about
60 Pentium I - III CPUs, 5lbs of RAM and 10lbs of 8-
16bit cards, all dissolved in. Any help will be
appreciated.
NO51RA a year ago do you buy your scrap online or do you collect it from Reply Upvote
local sources, I’m super curious if you have a consistent

supplier of chips!
CliffordK2 2 years ago I got some smelted bars that where supposed to Reply Upvote
contain 40% gold and 60% brass. He said they came

from computer chips. Is there a way to separate them
now that they are mixed together?
1 reply
ΓιωργοςΚ17 2 years ago can i use Aqua Regia to disolve gold ? Reply Upvote
1 reply
JohnathanW15 a year ago what do you have against nitrile gloves? can you Reply Upvote
provide evidence to support your opinion? most

gov, industry and edu produced charts ive read rate
them as ok for at least "incident contact" with
everything involved here.
1 reply
Reply Upvote
tjh20 a year ago I am about to run a test using the above methodology on a
fake 1898 silver dollar. It is a silver-plated "brass" slug
from China. The composition of the apparent brass is such
that the coin is the exact size and weight of a genuine coin.
The Ag thickness is rumored to be 100 mil. We will soon
see.
jza121 a year ago Hello. I mixed AP to leach gold ore. I was told it was a Reply Upvote
poor choice. After adding SMB to the resulting solution;

the percipitate was an electric yellow paste. How do I
know if it is gold chloride powder? Could it be iron
chloride? I though it would disintegrate if I tried to melt
it?
Guitar_Player 3 years ago You may want to clarify in step 5 that it is the Reply Upvote
circuit board fingers not yours. ...there are those

people out there who will put their fingers into
acid...
2 replies
SHOE0007 2 years ago I even filtered the gold and diluted it. About 50 ml of Reply Upvote
50% of 1 g of EDTA was added to double the gold

solution (filtered and decanted).
SHOE0007 2 years ago I have done test with EDTA ph 8 with ammonia and Reply Upvote
ammonia chloride and sea salt and test dissolved
partly neutral gold at a ph (solution of 4). It turned
yellow gold indicating that there was no nickel or
other metals just gold. Another link said that 95-
99.99% of cell phone cpu are gold with little lead,
nickel, etc. If it was lead it would have turned I think
white, Nickel (Purple), Chromium (Purple Cr3+),
etc. I may buy on e-bay a very percise nickel test for
liquids.
DavidS531 2 years ago I am sorry about this question but I need to know. Reply Upvote
1
Just how many, let's say, SDRAM chips, would it
take to pay for all of the equipment & materials
(including chemicals), just to get started? Allowing
you enough pre-purchased equipment & materials to
use in the recovery of more gold at a profit. A close
guesstimate will do fine.
2 replies
ElmakatyA 2 years ago good work Reply Upvote
ni1der 2 years ago I have an antique gold plated cane handle. Will the Reply Upvote
process work for this item?
More Comments Post Comment

Gold Recovery Correctly - 12 Steps

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gold Recovery Correctly - 12 Steps

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gold Recovery Correctly - 12 Steps

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

What safety precautions should be taken when recovering gold?

What safety precautions should be taken when recovering gold?

What chemicals are required for gold recovery?

What chemicals are required for gold recovery?

3/1/2019 Gold Recovery Correctly: 12 Steps

Published Aug 7th, 2011 Download Favorite

About: I eat food, sometimes I'm funny. More About Railes »

THIS SHOULD ALSO NEVER BE ATTEMPTED INDOORS.

*Cupellation is a refining process in metallurgy, where ores or alloyed metals are

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 1: SAFETY FIRST, Always.

chemical which will be presented in this instructable can be EXTREMELY

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 2: Equipment Needed.

Helpfull items which can make doing these experiments easier.

1. Borosil glass labware.

3. a 1 gallon bucket with holes drilled in the bottom. - to be used as a strainer.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 3: Chemicals Required.

1 gallon of Clorox Bleach. or Sodium hypochlorate at 6%

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 4: Selecting Materials to Be Recovered.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 5: The First Chemical Bath.

100 ML beaker, 1 gallon bucket, 2 1/2 gallon bucket.

Muratic acid, and hydrogen peroxide.

Materials you are looking to recover.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 6: Filtering the Gold Foils.

Congratulation you are about 50% finished. **********

Melting at this stage may lead to the following health hazards.

Cadmium is used frequently as a rust-preventive coating on steel and also as an

Disposing of your waste acids.

responsible with wastes.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 7: Creating Stannous Cloride.

These foils are about 80% gold, and copper 20%

The resulting solution should be bright yellow.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 8: The Second Chemical Bath Refining Your Gold Foils.

THIS STEP SHOULD NEVER BE ATTEMPTED without your CHEMICAL MASK.

I will be using Muratic acid, and clorox.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 9: Filtering Particles.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 10: Testing Your Solution for Gold.

you will need:

depending on how much gold is in your solution it may appear black.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 11: Recovering Your Gold.

Recovering your gold in solution is one of the Coolest steps.

Whats needed, a plastic spoon, and the sodium Bisulfate or Stumpout.

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download

Step 12: Melting

TADA Pure 24Karat gold.

http://goldrefiningforum.com/ This is a community of some of the brightest people I

Add Tip Ask Question Comment Download