Precious Metal Refining

Our Precious Metal Refining Process

Computers and other electronic devices harbor a treasure trove inside. The circuit boards, keyboard membranes, chips, and connectors in computers, cellphones, tablets, and other devices can yield a wealth of precious metals like platinum, palladium, silver, and gold. That’s why one of the most crucial elements of computer recycling is the recovery of these valuable metals from discarded equipment. This is yet another example of how all types of businesses — from mega-corporations to small, privately-owned companies — can make a huge contribution to world recycling efforts by sending their unused equipment to a qualified commercial recycling firm.

Typically, more than 320 tons of gold and 7,500 tons of silver are used each year in the manufacture of new electronics devices. In fact, in 2015 Apple reported that it had removed 2,204 pounds of gold from recycled Macs, iPhones, and other Apple devices. In addition to electronics manufacturing, these precious metals have other industry uses as well. For example, for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the metal extracted from nearly 72,000 metric tons of electronics waste and six million mobile phones (all donated by the people of Japan) was used to make approximately 5,000 gold, silver, and bronze Olympic medals.

In e-recycling, precious metals are identified and recovered during the equipment dismantling process, then separated and sorted for selling, refining, and reuse. Through a variety of processes, every scrap of this precious metal, down to the tiniest gold pin, is meticulously removed from circuit boards and other electronic components. Once extracted, these precious metals are sent to refineries and smelters, where they’re melted down and processed so that all impurities are removed, leaving only the pure precious metal intact. Once these metals have been refined to their maximum level of purity, they’re ready to be sold to manufacturers, where they’ll be reused in the manufacture of electronics, jewelry, and a variety of other items.

In certain devices, the extraction of gold and other precious metals can only be achieved through a chemical process and should only be done by highly trained technicians. In these situations, Adams Cable Equipment follows the highest health and safety regulations for the protection of its employees. Our practices are fully licensed and audited according to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) regulations, which ensures the complete safety of all our employees.

To facilitate the processing of these precious metals, Adams Cable Equipment has established relationships with the largest, most reputable refineries and smelters from all over the world, allowing us to offer competitive refining contracts backed by fair assays. Through our global logistics capabilities, we’re able to offer a full roster of comprehensive refining solutions for all types of precious metals recovered from recycled circuit boards and other electronic components.

By entrusting your company’s unused computers, cellphones, tablets, and electronic devices to Adams Cable Equipment, you can rest assured that every reusable component — from plastics and glass to earth metals and precious metals — will be recovered and recycled safely and responsibly.