Dental Scrap Refining
Precision and Integrity. One lot at a time.
"The most trusted name in dental refining" -
Dr. Michael Cohen- Founder Seattle Study Club
Step 1: Receipt
From the dental industry, we accept solids such as crowns, bridges, PFMs, PFGs, inlays, casting sprues and buttons as well as grindings, floor and bench sweeps, carpets and filters. There is no need to removethe tooth structure or other materials. Each lot is documented, weighed, photographed and logged into our system with individual bar codes for tracking.
Step 2: Melting
The scrap is then melted in an induction furnace which can reach temperatures of over three thousand degrees . These high temperatures are necessary to melt platinum and palladium- both of which have higher melting points than gold. Our furnaces ensure a homogeneous melt of your scrap into an ingot or bar prepped for an after melt weighing and sampling.
Step 3: Vacuum Pin Sample
At Scientific Metals, each lot is melted one at a time and a sample it taken via capillary action through a narrow glass cylinder, called a vacuum pin tube. This method is the gold standard and the preferred method for sampling. It is superior to drill samples as the sample is taken from the molten liquid ensuring a homogeneous sample.
Step 4: Assay Analysis
Pin, drilling and dust samples make their way through the laboratory to be assayed and analyzed using the latest and most sophisticated techniques and instrumentation. We employ the following technologies:
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• Fire and chemical analysis
• Inductive Coupled Plasma Spectrometry (ICAP)
• Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS)
• X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF)
Step 5: Settlement
Once your lot has been processed, melted, and assayed, we will contact you to discuss your settlement amount and answer any questions you may have. Our settlement sheet will detail the exact levels of gold, platinum, palladium, and silver. You can rest assure that there will be no hidden and unexpected fees. Flexible payment options include check, gold and silver bullion, casting gold, or wire and bank transfer.
