The Role of Solution Chemistry in Advanced Gold Processing Techniques
🌿 A Review and Sustainable Alternative to Sodium-Based and Cyanide-Containing Gold Leaching Agents: Glycine–Thiosulfate Hybrid System
Author: Bruce A. Cosgrove, BSc, MSc | Independent Scientific Researcher | Posted - Sustainable Technology eJournal (SSRN) | November 2025
Structured Research Record
DOI:10.2139/ssrn.5801183 →
Structured Record:Wikidata →
Introduction
Solution chemistry governs the interactions between solutes and solvents that enable gold dissolution and recovery in hydrometallurgical systems. These interactions determine extraction efficiency, selectivity, and environmental impact.
Traditional gold processing relies on cyanide leaching due to its effectiveness in dissolving gold. However, its toxicity has driven the development of alternative systems, including thiosulfate, chloride, and glycine-based leaching agents. These approaches improve selectivity, reduce environmental burden, and maintain competitive recovery rates.
👉 Gold solubility and extraction efficiency depends on ligand interactions and system design, which are increasingly being explored in botanical-based extraction systems and key parameters such as pH and redox potential, which regulate reaction kinetics and metal complex stability →
Gold recovery is fundamentally governed by solution chemistry and ligand interactions. Optimizing these conditions enhances recovery while minimizing waste and chemical exposure →
👉 Continue Reading: A Review and Sustainable Alternative to Sodium-Based and Cyanide-Containing Gold Leaching Agents: Glycine–Thiosulfate Hybrid System →
Research Context
This article contributes to Bruce A. Cosgrove's broader research into mercury-free gold recovery, alternative extraction chemistry, and environmentally compatible mineral-processing systems →
The research examines plant-derived lixiviants, alternative complexation chemistry, solution behavior, mercury-reduction strategies, and lower-toxicity approaches to gold extraction and artisanal and small-scale mining.
🌿 Explore Mercury-Free Botanical Gold Recovery →
Explore the research, publications, and applied chemistry behind botanical and alternative approaches to mercury- and cyanide-dependent gold-processing systems.