How Much Gold Do You Own

[alonebfg]

I found out today something really interesting. Due to the price of gold being so high pc components mobile phones and anything with electronics in it get broken down for amongst other things gold. A friend Helps in plant using chemicals to extract the gold. any the funny thing is that your old mobile phone thats broken and someone will give you 5p for can be worth up to £10 in gold. I thought he was joking till i told the other half and apparently the kids saw it on TV (bang goes the theory I think) where a bloke produced £50 in gold from old phones sim cards motherboards but could of got £120 if he done it right. Perhaps i am in the wrong business. LOL I wonder why the kids love to recycle there money in it for someone lol.

[CyberNerd]

Hot sodium cyanide solutions and aqua regia sound like a fantastic school project

[localzuk]

I found out today something really interesting. Due to the price of gold being so high pc components mobile phones and anything with electronics in it get broken down for amongst other things gold. A friend Helps in plant using chemicals to extract the gold. any the funny thing is that your old mobile phone thats broken and someone will give you 5p for can be worth up to £10 in gold. I thought he was joking till i told the other half and apparently the kids saw it on TV (bang goes the theory I think) where a bloke produced £50 in gold from old phones sim cards motherboards but could of got £120 if he done it right. Perhaps i am in the wrong business. LOL I wonder why the kids love to recycle there money in it for someone lol.

 

Sounds like schools could be quids in when they do a refresh then!

[kernewek-sam]

BBC iPlayer - Bang Goes the Theory: Series 5: Episode 2

[CyberNerd]

This thread has REALLY brought out my geeky side.

I was chatting with the Head of Chemistry and he's agreed to let me have a go. THe reagents are all quite cheap, and he's bought me a bottle of conc nitric acid for the task!

I'm going to try a small scale experiment, and if it works I'll involve our A-Level applied Scientists so that they can use the experiment with the object of calculating % yields.

 

I'm doing this more for educational benefit and kicks and giggles, rather than expecting to produce vast quantities of gold.

 

for others; this is my procedure. Feel free if you have anything to add. I'm going to make a start next week and will of course post photos (of the fire engines)

I've attached a risk assessment as well if anyone feels confident

 

Small Scale Reclamation and Refinery of Gold Metal from Waste Electrical Components

 

 

Reagents and Equipment

Waste Electrical Compnents

Concentrated Nitric Acid

Concentrated Hydrochloric Acid

Urea

Sodium Metabisulphite

Isopropanol

distilled water

Glass rod

Large Beaker (750ml)

Small Beaker (100ml) x2

Mechanical heat/stirrer

Flea (large)

Retort clamp and stand

crucible

Glass funnel

Filter paper

Buchner funnel (incase)

Ice bath

Lab Coat

Goggles

Fume Hood

Gloves (thick rubber)

 

Introduction

 

Gold is known to be mostly insoluble in Nitric acid, forming Au3+ ions but soluble in the form of Chloroauricacid with the addition of cholrine ions which are present in aqua regia.

Au (s) + 3 NO3− (aq) + 6 H+ (aq) → Au3+ (aq) + 3 NO2 (g) + 3 H2O (l)

Au3+ (aq) + 4 Cl− (aq) → AuCl4− (aq).

The Nitrix acid in the aqua regia mix can be neutralised with the addition of Urea, producing Urea Nitrate

(NH2)2CO (aq) + HNO3 (aq) → (NH2)2COHNO3 (s) (explosive)

Gold metal can be precipitated with the addition of Sodium Metabisulphite and production of Sulphur Dioxide as a by-product.

2Na2S2O5 (s) + HAuCl4 (aq) + 3H+ (aq) → 4NaCl (aq) + Au (s) + 4SO2 (g) + 2H2O (l)

 

Method:

 

The waste electrical components are cut into small pieces which contain visible gold. These pieces were placed into a 750ml beaker and covered with conc H2NO3. The mixture was heated and stirred for 30min to dissolve organic materials and non-precious metals.

The mixture was filtered and washed with hot conc H2NO3. The filtrate was neutralised and discarded as aqueous waste. The remaining solid was placed into a beaker and a solution of 3:1 conc HCL and conc H2NO3 (aqua regia) were added so that the liquid just covers the solid material. The mixture was heated and stirred for 40min to dissolve all of the gold. The mixture was filtered and the glassware and undissolved electrical components were washed with hot aqua regia. The filtrate was retained. Once the solution had cooled to room temperature, excess urea was added to the mixture until the acid stopped fizzing. Approximately 3-4g Sodium metabisulphite were slowly added to the solution until the smell of Sulphur Dioxide could be detected. A small amount of Isopropanol was added as a surfactant to release any floating particles. The solution was further cooled and left overnight. The solution was filtered, collecting gold which was melted in a crucible.

 

 

 

RiskAssessment.doc

[m25man]

Based upon the above information and calculating the average Edugeek members electronics collection, I would estimate that we have enough gold between us to solve the nations debt crisis.

So everybody send your gold filled gadgets to @CyberNerd and we can all sleep easy that the financial woe brought upon us by the bankers will be resolved.

 

PS send me a postcard from the Cayman Islands @CyberNerd

[korifugi]

Based upon the above information and calculating the average Edugeek members electronics collection, I would estimate that we have enough gold between us to solve the nations debt crisis.

So everybody send your gold filled gadgets to @CyberNerd and we can all sleep easy that the financial woe brought upon us by the bankers will be resolved.

 

PS send me a postcard from the Cayman Islands @CyberNerd

 

Just as long as he doesn't start plating everything in gold, then advertises for a junior technician under the terms they wear a bowler hat and are rather nifty at throwing things...

[cromertech]

 

Say no more

[unixman]

Reclaiming the gold from computers isn't a new idea. Most of the big irons especially IBMs contained large amounts of gold and other precious metals and they were often wrecked for the content at the end of their lives. This is why there are so few 1960's machines such as the IBM System/360s around. These machines typically occupied an entire room and the amount of gold was quite significant.

[Millgate]

When I saw my Nan at the weekend, she was carefully taking the chocolate off of a Crunchie. When i asked her what she was doing, she said she was going to send it to Cash For Gold!

 

I can't remember which comedian said this, but i loved it!

[DJ-Jonesy]

Cant you just send in a stock pile of computers to Cash My Gold and say cash that! hehe!

[Earthling]

Reclaiming the gold from computers isn't a new idea. Most of the big irons especially IBMs contained large amounts of gold and other precious metals and they were often wrecked for the content at the end of their lives. This is why there are so few 1960's machines such as the IBM System/360s around. These machines typically occupied an entire room and the amount of gold was quite significant.

 

Someone else remembers 360's.....first computer I ever worked on.

[CyberNerd]

I'm attempting this now. I've adapted the method (from above) and added some photos.

It's pretty noxious - so I'm doing it in a fume cupboard as per the risk assessment.

 

Method:

 

The waste electrical components are cut into small pieces which contain visible gold. These pieces were placed into a 750ml beaker and covered with approximately 150ml conc H2NO3. The mixture was stirred for 30min to dissolve organic materials and non-precious metals. The reaction was exothermic and produced a turquoise collared gas and turned the liquid turquoise/blue. Once the fizzing stopped and the solution was cool the mixture was filtered and washed with conc H2NO3.

 

 

The filtrate was neutralised and discarded as aqueous waste. The remaining solid was placed into a beaker and a solution of 3:1 conc HCL (100ml) and conc H2NO3 (50ml) (aqua regia) were added so that the liquid just covers the solid material.

 

 

The reaction was exothermic and produced brown fumes and a dark brown liquid.

 

 

 

The mixture was stirred for 60min to dissolve all of the gold.

 

The mixture was filtered and the glassware and undissolved electrical components were washed with aqua regia. The filtrate was retained.

 

 

 

Will post back some more info later.

Edited October 24, 2011 by CyberNerd

[Dos_Box]

Are you going to create a lump of purest green?

Actually, I'm really interested to see how this turns out. So far it's getting my vote for 'Most original thread of the year'.

[MK-2]

So far it's getting my vote for 'Most original thread of the year'.

 

challenge accepted!

[CyberNerd]

Are you going to create a lump of purest green?

 

Seems I've now got a green liquid (see pic). I think this is the chloroauric acid (but thought that was yellow. perhaps just green because of all the other stuff floating around...)

 

I also decided to heat the circuit boards in the aqua regia - there were bits that clearly hadn't dissolved proper.

 

 

 

 

Heating done with a bunsen, although magnetic heat plate is recommended (couldn't find one)

Edited October 24, 2011 by CyberNerd

[CyberNerd]

no gold visible after dissolving it in the aqua regia

[MK-2]

no gold visible after dissolving it in the aqua regia[ATTACH=CONFIG]11780[/ATTACH]

 

but more importantly, what of bond, is he gone?

[CyberNerd]

but more importantly, what of bond, is he gone?

 

He also dissolved quite rapidly.

 

Next step:

 

After filtering the solids, the glassware was washed in aqua regia - I used about 100ml - but now think this was way too much, probably about 25ml would be better as i don't want the gold too dilute.

Then added a few grams of Urea

 

until it stopped fizzing:

 

 

Then added Sodium Metabisulphite - might have overdone it a bit, smell of sulphur dioxide was quite evident.

Anyway the solution turned black and there is a precipitate, grey/brown - this should be the gold. I scratched the bottom of the flask with a glass rod to promote nucleation on the glass and put it in the fridge next to the hydrogen peroxide and orange juice.

 

 

I'll leave it there for a bit then filter it.

Edited October 24, 2011 by CyberNerd

[Butters]

You have to love Science fridges, one potentially dangerous liquid next to the orange juice or the utterly butterly.

[CyberNerd]

You have to love Science fridges, one potentially dangerous liquid next to the orange juice or the utterly butterly.

 

yeah, crazy. Theres a bunch of fridges, all mixed with food and chemicals...

 

 

My latest update: Not good news.

 

I think I may have added too much sodium metabisulphite. I collected the precipitate and it was a bit on the black side.

 

It should look like this:

 

File:Golddust.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

but I got this:

 

 

I'm guessing the excess metabisulphite caused other stuff (particularly copper) to precipitate with the gold.

 

I did a quick flame test and it went bright green, a sign for copper

 

 

 

I think I'll need to re-crystalise my mess from aqua regia again.

back to the drawing board, and won't have time to do it this week. Will post back if I come up with anything.

[X-13]

@CyberNerd Did you have any luck refining the extraction process?

[CyberNerd]

@CyberNerd Did you have any luck refining the extraction process?

 

Partial. I'm a bit annoyed actually. I redissolved it all in dil HCl and filtered it. I've got a piece of dark stained filter paper in the office, nothing significant- The majority of the undissolved product (around 500mg) I wrapped up, took home and put on the coffee table, and it was promptly was binned by my girlfriend in one of her tidying up crazes, by the time i'd discovered the binmen had already been. So yes I did get around 500mg of a brownish material, I doubt it was particularly pure and I didn't get the chance to melt it down. The Head of Chemistry is quite keen on repeating this during the summer, on a larger scale though.

[synaesthesia]

Very interesting thread, and even despite the results I still think I'd rather send any actual gold to CyberNerd than Cash4Gold!

 

And I found it a bit funny (not to the detriment of the experiment) that as soon as Dos_Box said about purest green, lo and behold, we got green!

(Easily my favourite series of Blackadder - well, probably equal to 4)

 

Very interested to see how it goes. I used to work for a company that had the countries largest warehouse for automatically stripping down parts for the gold and copper contents. Never got to see that part of it work, but we usually kept the copper heatsinks for ourselves, flogged it to the scrappies (via electricians we knew) and used to get around £50 a month which kept us in decent tools and biscuits.

[featured_spectre]

Did you know the mayans smelted copper with gold and even by Todays machinery it registers as pure gold!! Lol. The method got documented on how they did it. Look it up, might make it stretch further.