Sustainable gold extraction from ore and electronic waste

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dc.contributor.authorMann, M.
dc.contributor.authorNicholls, T.P.
dc.contributor.authorPatel, H.D.
dc.contributor.authorLisboa, L.S.
dc.contributor.authorPople, J.M.M.
dc.contributor.authorPham, L.N.
dc.contributor.authorWorthington, M.J.H.
dc.contributor.authorSmith, M.R.
dc.contributor.authorYin, Y.
dc.contributor.authorAndersson, G.G.
dc.contributor.authorGibson, C.T.
dc.contributor.authorEsdaile, L.J.
dc.contributor.authorLenehan, C.E.
dc.contributor.authorCoote, M.L.
dc.contributor.authorJia, Z.
dc.contributor.authorChalker, J.M.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractGold plays an essential role in the global economy and has wide applications in various industrial technologies. Currently, the gold supply relies heavily on mining processes that employ toxic substances such as cyanide salts and mercury metal, leading to substantial environmental pollution. Gold extraction approaches that do not rely on cyanide and mercury are needed to improve the overall sustainability of gold production. Here we develop an approach for gold leaching and recovery from ore and electronic waste. This approach first uses trichloroisocyanuric acid, activated by a halide catalyst, to oxidatively dissolve gold metal from ore and electronic waste, and then applies a polysulfide polymer sorbent to selectively bind gold from the leachate. The gold can be recovered in high purity by pyrolysing or depolymerizing the sorbent. The efficacy of this approach in gold extraction was validated using ore, electronic waste and other gold-containing waste. Overall, this work provides a viable approach to achieve greener gold production from both primary and secondary resources, improving the sustainability of the gold supply.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityMaximilian Mann, Thomas P. Nicholls, Harshal D. Patel, Lynn S. Lisboa, Jasmine M. M. Pople, Le Nhan Pham, Max J. H. Worthington, Matthew R. Smith, Yanting Yin, Gunther G. Andersson, Christopher T. Gibson, Louisa J. Esdaile, Claire E. Lenehan, Michelle L. Coote, Zhongfan Jia, Justin M. Chalker
dc.identifier.citationNature Sustainability, 2025; 8(8):947-956
dc.identifier.doi10.1038/s41893-025-01586-w
dc.identifier.issn2398-9629
dc.identifier.issn2398-9629
dc.identifier.orcidGibson, C.T. [0000-0003-3334-5059]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/147058
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE150101863
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP200100090
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP210100025
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP230100587
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP200301660
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP200301661
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FT220100054
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE250100525
dc.rights© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited 2025
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-025-01586-w
dc.subjectGold; electronic waste
dc.titleSustainable gold extraction from ore and electronic waste
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished online

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