High-Grade PCB
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Gold-rich circuit boards
High-Grade PCB Scrap – Premium Printed Circuit Boards for Gold, Silver, Palladium & Copper Recovery
Buy high-grade PCB scrap – premium printed circuit boards from computers, servers, telecom, and industrial electronics. Rich in gold, silver, palladium, and copper. Ideal for e-waste refiners. Contact us for bulk orders. Delivery by air, land & sea worldwide. Standard & express shipment available.
Our High-Grade PCB Scrap consists of premium printed circuit boards sourced from decommissioned electronics with the highest precious metal content. This includes motherboards, server backplanes, telecom line cards, industrial control boards, military/aerospace PCBs, and high-frequency RF boards. Unlike low-grade PCBs (from consumer appliances, power supplies, etc.), high-grade boards contain significantly more gold, silver, palladium, and copper.
For e-waste recyclers and precious metal refiners, high-grade PCBs offer the best return on investment due to dense gold-plated traces, numerous ICs with gold bonding wires, gold-plated edge connectors, silver-filled vias, palladium-plated components, and thick copper layers.
What Is Considered High-Grade PCB?
| Category | Examples | Gold Content Potential |
|---|---|---|
| Computer motherboards (desktop & server) | Intel, AMD, Supermicro, Dell, HP server boards | High |
| Telecom & networking PCBs | Cisco, Juniper, Alcatel-Lucent line cards, backplanes | Very High |
| Industrial control & automation | Siemens, ABB, Rockwell PLC boards | High |
| Military/aerospace PCBs | Vintage mil-spec boards (often gold-plated throughout) | Very High to Extreme |
| Medical imaging & diagnostic | Ultrasound, CT scanner boards | High |
| High-frequency RF boards | Gold-plated traces for signal integrity | High |
| Test & measurement equipment | Tektronix, Keysight, Fluke (vintage) | High |
| Cell tower & base station PCBs | Dense gold on connectors and traces | Very High |
Gold-Bearing Components on High-Grade PCBs:
| Component | Gold Source | Recovery Method |
|---|---|---|
| Gold-plated edge connectors (PCI, ISA, AGP, PCIe slots) | Hard gold on contacts | Stripping (chemical or electrolytic) |
| Gold-plated fingers & pads | Gold flash on solder pads | Stripping |
| Gold IC leads & bonding wires (from ceramic or some plastic ICs) | High-purity gold | Incineration + smelting or chemical leaching |
| Gold-plated vias & through-holes (visible on military boards) | Gold on inner walls | Whole-board leaching or milling |
| Gold-plated shielding cans | Gold over copper/steel | Stripping |
| Gold-plated buttons & contacts (test points, jumpers) | Hard gold | Stripping |
| Silver-filled vias & traces (white-looking dots) | Silver | Smelting/leaching |
| Palladium-plated multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) end caps | Palladium & silver | Smelting |
Typical Metal Yields per Metric Ton (1,000 kg) – High-Grade Mixed PCBs:
| Metal | Low Estimate | High Estimate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold (Au) | 150 g | 500 g | Up to 1,000 g on mil/aerospace boards |
| Silver (Ag) | 1,000 g | 5,000 g | From vias, caps, and solder |
| Palladium (Pd) | 20 g | 150 g | Present on MLCCs, some connectors |
| Copper (Cu) | 100 kg | 250 kg | Base metal recovery |
| Tin (Sn) | 20 kg | 50 kg | From solder masks and solder |
*Industry average for modern high-grade motherboards: ~200–350g gold per metric ton.*
Key Applications:
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Precious metal refining (gold, silver, palladium)
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Copper recovery for smelters
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E-waste recycling and material processing
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Investment in precious metal-bearing scrap
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Feedstock for shredding + physical separation plants (copper + precious metal concentrate)
Available Quantities:
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Sample packs: 5 kg – 10 kg (for assay testing)
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Small boxes: 25 kg – 50 kg (hobbyist refiners)
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Gaylord boxes: 500 kg – 1,000 kg
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Baled PCBs: 800 kg – 1,200 kg per bale
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Full 20ft container: 12 – 15 metric tons
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Full 40ft container: 22 – 25 metric tons
Quality Grading System (Our Standard):
| Grade | Description | Typical Gold (g/ton) |
|---|---|---|
| Premium | High-density telecom, server, mil/aerospace, vintage (1990s) | 400 – 1,000+ |
| High | Modern server boards, high-end gaming motherboards, industrial control | 250 – 450 |
| Standard | Desktop motherboards, peripheral cards (non-server) | 150 – 250 |
| Low (not offered) | Consumer appliance boards, power supplies, single-sided PCBs | < 100 |
We supply Premium and High grades only. No low-grade or mixed consumer boards.
What is NOT Included (We Pre-Sort Out):
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Power supply PCBs (low gold)
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TV/CRT monitor boards (low gold)
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Appliance control boards (washing machines, microwaves, etc.)
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Green fiber boards without gold fingers (e.g., some RAM without fingers)
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Broken or burned boards (rejected)
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Batteries, capacitors (except small SMD types), and hazardous components
Processing Recommendations for Refiners:
| Scale | Method |
|---|---|
| Small (5–50 kg) | Manual depopulation of golden parts (connectors, ICs) → chemical stripping of fingers and pins → aqua regia for remaining chips |
| Medium (50–500 kg) | Shred to ~5cm → magnetic separation → eddy current → gravity/float-sink → precious metal concentrate for smelting |
| Large (500 kg+) | Industrial e-waste shredder → hammer mill → copper/precious metal smelting (copper collects gold, silver, palladium) |
Why High-Grade PCB Offers Best ROI:
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Higher gold concentration than low-grade boards → lower processing cost per gram of gold
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Less waste material (fiberglass, epoxy) per kg → cheaper shipping and disposal
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Known sources → predictable yields for assay planning
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Copper recovery adds significant value at smelting stage
Assay & Pricing:
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No assay provided on small lots (pricing based on typical yields)
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For lots >100 kg, we can provide third-party fire assay certificate (additional cost)
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Pricing formula: (spot gold – refining fee) × estimated gold content × weight
For more inquiries or to place an order (samples, gaylords, pallets, or containers), please contact us. We deliver by air, land, and sea — internationally. Standard and express shipment options available.
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