Devise / Currency
Langue / Language
Calculate the effective yield (%) after smelting and refining. Identify avoidable losses.
Ready to buy physical gold at live spot prices?
Buy and store physical gold in secure Zurich or Geneva vaults at direct live LBMA spot rates.
Alloy yield (recovery rate) is the ratio of metal recovered after smelting to the theoretical expected mass. A yield of 98% means that from 100 g of theoretical mass, only 98 g of fine metal is recovered. The remaining 2% is lost to oxides, splatter, and crucible waste.
Typical yields by metal: Fine gold (999‰) reaches 98% to 99.8% with a modern induction furnace. Jewellery gold alloys (750‰) show more losses (96% to 98%). Silver is more volatile and may show yields of 95% to 98%. Platinum, conversely, is nearly inert and easily reaches 99.5%.
To improve yield: use clean, non-porous crucibles, smelt under a reducing atmosphere, process slags and sludges (they often contain 20% to 50% precious metal), and regularly calibrate your loss rate with tested batches.
A yield of 98% to 99.5% is considered excellent. Fine gold and platinum have the best yields (often >99%), while gold alloys (750‰) and silver lose slightly more to slag and oxidation.
Physical losses (splatter, slag, polishing sweeps) can be sent to a professional refinery for sweep refining, which allows the recovery of up to 99% of residual precious metals.
Prices shown are indicative (LBMA mid-market). They do not constitute investment advice.
GoldPrice24
Who are you?