Refining

Refine: To free (metals) from impurities or unwanted materials.

 

Refining Procedure

In metallurgy, refining is the term used to describe the purifying of an impure metal or the removal of a pure metal from base metal. There are many methodologies used to separate precious metals from non-noble-metals. The processes used in precious metal refining, which is the separation of metals such as gold, silver, and platinum from non-noble-metalliferous metals, include pyrolysis or hydrolysis techniques (or a combination of the two).

In 1874, Emil Wohlwill invented the Wohlwill process, an industrial-scale chemical procedure used to refine gold to the highest degree of purity (99.999%). The process is necessary for the highest purity gold.

The electro-chemical process sees an electrical current pass between two electrodes and through an electrolyte. This results in the transfer of metal ions into the ionized electrolyte solution, where positive ions are deposited on the cathode and negative ions on the anode.

This method produces exceptionally pure precious metals and is one of the most environmentally-friendly refining processes for separating precious metals from slag.

What We Do

Italgold Refinery follows the Wohlwill process to extract precious metals from various unwanted materials, such as industrial waste, manufacturing by-products, dore bars, and scrap jewelry.

The Italgold refinery has the technical capacity to purify precious metals including:

  • Gold
  • Silver
  • Platinum
  • Palladium

The refinery is capable of producing high-purity precious metals from a variety of sources, such as low-grade products like computer scrap through to high-grade mined dore bars.

Receipt & Sampling

Italgold Refinery abides by the highest industry standards. Our standard operating procedures include:

  • Through investigation of shipments on arrival to establish the integrity of the product.
  • Accurate and precise analysis to determine the precious metal content of the sample(s).
  • Generation of a homogeneous concentrate from which a sample(s) can be drawn, which is representative of the entire shipment.

Any samples are documented and retained as the reference point for the refined product produced for the customer.

It is these precise standards that ensure that Italgold Refinery provides its customers with the highest possible quality and quantity of refined precious metals.

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To learn more about how refined precious metals are classified, see our Assaying Services.

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