Separate lead and gold out of concentrate

[dchoff35]

Hello everyone,

Was curious if anyone knows if lead will amalgam with mercury? I have the hardest time removing the lead. Or any other tips or tricks

 

[mytimetoshine]

I dont believe so but could be wrong. Tiny lead fragments are a pain in the arse for sure. why can't lead be magnetic?!?!?!?

 

[et1955]

To answer you question, " NO " on mercury and lead, the more you work on removing lead from gold barring material the better you will get at it. Experience is your best friend, patience and practice.

 

[ratled]

Nitric will dissolve lead but you need to know how to handle the acid. Don't over do it or it will stain your gold. It will also take care of the merc too so you have to be careful about that. It's best to work with someone who knows what they are doing.

ratled

 

[johnedoe]

Classify, Classify, Classify, Classify.......

 

[kcm]

The best thing you can do is classify - LOTS...not just one size. Gold is almost twice as heavy as lead. That means you cannot have lead that is twice the size of your gold pieces without also trapping the lead. Not sure what the purity of your gold is there, but even if you figure classifying in 1/2-sizes, you should do OK. Meaning, let's say you start at 1/4". Half of that is 1/8" - half of that 1/16", 1/32", 1/64", and so on and so on, until you get down to maybe 100 mesh (not sure just how far you want to take it). 100 mesh is pretty small, but you can still classify down further.

If gold is the heaviest thing in your pan or sluice, you'll have fewer, more highly-concentrated product in the end. From there, can simply smelt the rest out and end up with a nice little button.

Here's one of the mesh charts I keep on hand:
http://www.carbidellc.com/TechInfo/References/USMeshTylerConversion.pdf

 

[winners58]

just dry it then use a magnify glass and a toothpick.
one time I had it so bad I put a hand full a black sand with it in a stainless steel pan
then heated, outside over a propane stove got it really hot shaking it to keep it from clumping
I let it cool then panned it, the lead clumped together or became rounded up and was easy to separate from the gold.

 

[weregolf]

Lead NOT amalgam with mercury, only created a cover layer over lead ..like paiting
The problem will be small parts/mineral which contain gold, silver or other metal that can create amalgam.
Remember clean mercury before use it, crush it with ashes.

 

[KevinInColorado]

just dry it then use a magnify glass and a toothpick.
one time I had it so bad I put a hand full a black sand with it in a stainless steel pan
then heated, outside over a propane stove got it really hot shaking it to keep it from clumping
I let it cool then panned it, the lead clumped together and was easy to separate from the gold.

Toothpick...noooo. But I like this heating idea since lead melts at a low temp. However wouldn't some gold get trapped in the molten lead?

I deal with a lot of shredded lead, it's easy to remove once you classify thoughly...all panning is quick and easy once you classify properly: 12/30/50/100 (100 is probably optional) and use jetdry for everything that falls thru the 50 mesh screen so the gold doesn't float!

 

[goldog]

As others have said classify out the buckshot and bigger stuff. Shot is a real pain because it rolls. For the small scraps you can't seem to separate, a mix of vinegar and hydrogen peroxide will dissolve it.

 

[Capt Nemo]

Two words.......Miller table!


Lead cannot be lighter than gold. It has a heavier atomic weight at 207.2, whereas gold is 196.96. The only difference can be density of the metallic structure.

 

[kcm]

My bad. I should have said gold has a SG nearly twice that of lead.

Thanks for correcting me. That's a common mistake that I've picked up from many other folks.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Lead cannot be lighter than gold. It has a heavier atomic weight at 207.2, whereas gold is 196.96. The only difference can be density of the metallic structure.

The weight of each atom is only partially relevant in the real world since you never handle individual atoms. The crystal structure of gold metal is very tight due to the alignment of the electrons in the outer shell with the result that equal volumes of lead and gold have dramatically different weights with the gold being more heavy by far.

 

[johnedoe]

The weight of each atom is only partially relevant in the real world since you never handle individual atoms. The crystal structure of gold metal is very tight due to the alignment of the electrons in the outer shell with the result that equal volumes of lead and gold have dramatically different weights with the gold being more heavy by far.

That's easy for you to say......

 

[KevinInColorado]

That's easy for you to say......

What can I say, my son is a science teacher!