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Recovery of Gold from Potassium Gold Cyanide

July 28, 2008

I have a very small amount of potassium gold cyanide and some silver cyanide. I don't really want to do any plating.
I would like to recover the gold and silver. I am an organic chemist by training, not an inorganic chemist. I have access to typical organic analytical equipment (and a fume hood), but nothing really geared towards the inorganic.

I'd like to recover the gold and silver and destroy the cyanide safely. Thanks.

Jerome Laux
- Union County, Georgia, USA

Hi, Jerome. Things have changed tremendously in the last couple of decades and almost everything done in industry is regulated. If that analytical equipment and fume hood is in a business, they are probably not allowed to do what you propose. If they are in your garage, you could electroplate the gold and silver out (but cyanide really has no business in a residential area).

If these solutions were company property, I wouldn't take them even for free. If it's something you are stuck with, I'd suggest taking it to your county's hazardous waste collection. Destroying cyanide certainly can be done, but you should really have hands-on training because accidentally acidifying it creates the gas chamber. Although you are a trained organic chemist, the WWW is a one-room schoolhouse, and destroying cyanide with bleach might be okay for you, but totally untrained people may follow the same instruction despite our constant warnings.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
July 31, 2008

August 5, 2008

Unfortunately we don't even have a proper recycling program in this county, much less hazardous waste collection.

The fume hood and other equipment are in my workshop, not part of any business.

Does anyone know of any reputable disposal/recycling companies? I've got several hundred grams of both to get rid of. I'd prefer to get some money out of them, of course - after all - it would be a couple of troy ounces of gold.

Jerome Laux
- Union County, Georgia, USA

Do a search for gold reclaimers/refiners. There are many who can handle your chemicals and pay you for the precious metals. There is nothing to be saved by converting to rough metal yourself. You'll still have to sell to a reclaimer/refiner.

Jeffrey Holmes, CEF
Spartanburg, South Carolina
August 8, 2008

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