Electro-gravimetric recovery of silver from aqueous solutions and its precursors

Abstract

A simple electrolytic cell was used for electrochemical recovery of silver from aqueous solutions containing 100 mg/L Ag(I). Two different sets of electrodes were applied to find the enhanced recovery of silver. Rocks and ores samples were processed through fire assay method and acid digestion. A set of electrodes comprised of stainless steel anode and aluminum cathode gave maximum recovery (96.5%) of silver. This simple, robust, environment friendly and highly sensitive method was effectively applied to various ores and rock samples. The developed method with slight modifications can also be applied for the recovery of other metals.

KEY WORDS: Boulangerite ore, Deposition, Electrolytic cell, Electrodes, Recovery, Silver

Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2016, 30(2), 165-174

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v30i2.1