TheSilentBugler
Tim
Yeah, full of nuggets of knowledge 
Mercury Use and Recovering Gold from Amalgam information and questions
- Thread starter Golden Tiger
- Start date
Help Support Prospecting Australia:
Cheers bugler, what issue book number is it? ive got a couple popular mechanics.
Its almost tempting trying the techniques here but theres some constant concern about how they explain to do it and may not be too safe, but certainly safer than other extraction methods.
The U shape I would be concerned of, in case mercury particles could escape easily when agitated.
The spud guard seems to be ok, but id still have a leak concern or not a full recovery of mercury.
Cheers for the doc though, rippa, I love the old books, I collect many!
Its almost tempting trying the techniques here but theres some constant concern about how they explain to do it and may not be too safe, but certainly safer than other extraction methods.
The U shape I would be concerned of, in case mercury particles could escape easily when agitated.
The spud guard seems to be ok, but id still have a leak concern or not a full recovery of mercury.
Cheers for the doc though, rippa, I love the old books, I collect many!
shivan said:
So long as neither you nor anyone who owns the place afterwards wants to grow veggies out the back...
Still, elemental mercury isn't very soluble in water. The main worry would be to make sure you aren't exposed to the fumes while retorting. Otherwise, you might start to act like a hatter
Don't worry Ill be disposing of correctly.mfdes said:shivan said:
So long as neither you nor anyone who owns the place afterwards wants to grow veggies out the back...
Still, elemental mercury isn't very soluble in water. The main worry would be to make sure you aren't exposed to the fumes while retorting. Otherwise, you might start to act like a hatter
Something to help coagulate loose Hg particles would be useful, but I haven't seen such a thing yet.
Fumes will be easily kept at bay with the retort and water, I may even double condense the vapour.
For some reason my parents let me play with mercury a lot when I was a child..you know..love? Anyway, I've had my share of contamination and don't need more
*twitch*
G'day mfdes, did a fair bit of research before i went near mercury. Everything i have read talks about elemental mercury being insoluble in water, though mercury salts can be sparingly soluble in warm water. Was i wrong in my understanding?mfdes said:
I would be a lot happier eating veggies from my back yard than i would eating fish after what i have read
But do not worry too much the place the water got tipped will only ever be grass or concrete, and as i have only retorted 4 times and dumped probably less than 1 liter of water, i do not believe i have contaminated the yard just yet.... hopefully
That was my main question but more refined I guess, but does the retort method produce Hg salts at all in any part of the process? Im guessing not as theres nothing to cause that
This is starting to get "Interesting."
I am not an expert on this but as far as I can see,,
Retorted Mercury into cold water is fine.
There is no migration into the water medium as long as you do not have another element that Mercury reacts with. (Look that one up)
.
So the silver fillings I have had since I was 7 years old are Mercury Amalgam, (Not Silver).
No wonder I am mad. :lol:
I am not an expert on this but as far as I can see,,
Retorted Mercury into cold water is fine.
There is no migration into the water medium as long as you do not have another element that Mercury reacts with. (Look that one up)
.
So the silver fillings I have had since I was 7 years old are Mercury Amalgam, (Not Silver).
No wonder I am mad. :lol:
lol, got a photo of them by any chance? I find some bits of wire amalgam but only a couple of bits.
And yes, by the looks of it, its always elemental mercury unless reacted with something other.
Its been a good learn along the way. Ill be posting when I try it all out
And yes, by the looks of it, its always elemental mercury unless reacted with something other.
Its been a good learn along the way. Ill be posting when I try it all out
Omg, sorry, thought you wrote filings..like metal filings...erg. Lol
Nah keep your fillings lol. I remember reading something about mercury fillings needing to be replaced because they react with something
Even if iron iron is used, the mercury just gets stuck to it easier but it would still work if kept clean and stored correctly in water.
Nah keep your fillings lol. I remember reading something about mercury fillings needing to be replaced because they react with something
Even if iron iron is used, the mercury just gets stuck to it easier but it would still work if kept clean and stored correctly in water.
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2013
- Messages
- 346
- Reaction score
- 75
I thought aluminium. Wild guess
TheSilentBugler
Tim
My uncle showed me the spud method, worked a treat.
He didn't mash the spud though, he put it in a manky old jar with a bunch of others, guess he did a bulk batch later, he would have showed me that too, but fell off his perch. And no, not mercury poisoning.
He did explain the dangers of mercury, but wasn't silly about it.
Funnily enough a half spud also makes a fine crucible to melt yellow in with a hot enough torch.
Wish I was smart enough back then to properly absorb knowledge
He didn't mash the spud though, he put it in a manky old jar with a bunch of others, guess he did a bulk batch later, he would have showed me that too, but fell off his perch. And no, not mercury poisoning.
He did explain the dangers of mercury, but wasn't silly about it.
Funnily enough a half spud also makes a fine crucible to melt yellow in with a hot enough torch.
Wish I was smart enough back then to properly absorb knowledge
Always time to refresh yourself with some info
At least you got to see it in action. I'll probably try it once and yeah the potatoe is a great crucible as its basically just carbon.
It was very useful the information you supplied though mate
At least you got to see it in action. I'll probably try it once and yeah the potatoe is a great crucible as its basically just carbon.
It was very useful the information you supplied though mate
I also used to play with mercury as a kid and I turned out alright (some might disagree! ).
So far as I know metallic mercury does not dissolve in water. However heated or vapour-phase mercury might oxidise a little, and mercury oxides could form a hydroxide in contact with water, or carbonates. Mercury salts are somewhat soluble.
I think, like everything, it's just about being informed about how to do it safely.
).So far as I know metallic mercury does not dissolve in water. However heated or vapour-phase mercury might oxidise a little, and mercury oxides could form a hydroxide in contact with water, or carbonates. Mercury salts are somewhat soluble.
I think, like everything, it's just about being informed about how to do it safely.
I fully agree, but because it is a touchy subject sometimes getting the information can be hard. Why i wanted to know if i got it wrong as well
Again my understanding is only limited, but i did not think elemental mercury (including vapor) could oxidize well under normal conditions? As from memory elemental mercury can remain airborne for over a year and be transported thousands of km's before it is oxidized and deposited. Hence the problem with mercury being burned off and not retorted.
Again my understanding is only limited, but i did not think elemental mercury (including vapor) could oxidize well under normal conditions? As from memory elemental mercury can remain airborne for over a year and be transported thousands of km's before it is oxidized and deposited. Hence the problem with mercury being burned off and not retorted.
Have I found the free dirt icon ?Diggertom said:
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2016
- Messages
- 1
- Reaction score
- 0
hey guys just wondering how to extract mercury from gold for reuse or if it can be done any advice would be great cheers
Look up mercury retort
Similar threads
