Notice of Retraction: Thiosulfate Leaching of Gold and Silver from Waste Mobile Phones

Abstract

Thiosulfate leaching of gold and silver from waste mobile phones were investigated, the results indicated that gold and silver contents of waste mobile phones were 0.211mg/g, 0.67mg/g, respectively. So the gold and silver could be recovered from the waste mobile phones effectively. The best leaching conditions were as follows: solid/liquid ratio of 1:5, thiosulfate concentration of 0.30mol/L, ammonia concentration of 0.40mol/L, copper ions concentration of 0.03mol/L, leaching temperature of 40°C, leaching time of 2.5h, pH value of 9-10, adding 5.00mL 0.2% SO32- and air flow rate of 1.2L/min, and the highest leaching rate of gold and silver reached 93.36% and 69.4% respectively. Compared with the conventional and toxic cyanide leaching of gold, thiosulfate leaching had advantages of non-toxic, quick leaching speed, high leaching rate, weak corrosion to equipment, etc. The obtained data would be useful for the development of processes for the recycling of gold and silver from waste mobile phones.