Iodine leaching / Custom builds

Containerized gold
recovery from electronic waste.

20'/40' HCContainer footprint Au > 98%Recovery rate 72 hOn-site startup ZLDZero liquid discharge
UNIT 04 / FIELD VIEW Containerized iodine leaching plant interior — pumps, reactors, electrowinning cell
IOD-LEACH-C20 / Interior — leach circuit, filtrate tanks, electrowinning cell (illustrative image)
98.2% Au recovery / batch
< 50 L Daily water make-up
0 kg Cyanide used
5 t/day Max feed throughput
What we build

A complete iodine leaching plant, fitted inside a single shipping container.

Every IODEx unit is engineered to order around your feedstock — crushed PCBs, RAM, CPU pins, mixed e-scrap, low-grade dust. The leach circuit, filtrate handling, electrowinning cell, iodine regeneration loop and tailings solid-return are integrated into a 20' or 40' HC container with all pumps, sensors and control panels pre-mounted.

No civil works. No concrete pad. No fixed plumbing. Set the container on flat ground, connect three-phase power and a water make-up line, and the plant is ready for commissioning.

01 / FEED INTAKE

Crushed e-scrap loaded to hopper

Pre-shredded and milled feed (≤ 2 mm) is dosed into the agitated leach reactor via a sealed screw conveyor. Negative pressure in the hopper prevents dust escape.

Feed size ≤ 2 mmBatch 50–500 kg
02 / LEACH CIRCUIT

Iodine–iodide dissolution of gold

Gold is dissolved into the I₂ / I⁻ aqueous complex under agitation at ambient temperature. No pressure vessel, no acid mist, no NOx — the chemistry is contained and recirculated.

I₂ / I⁻ lixiviant40–60 °C2–6 h residence
03 / FILTRATION

Solid–liquid separation

Pregnant solution is filtered from solids through a chamber filter press. Solids are washed and discharged as decontaminated tailings; pregnant solution is routed to recovery.

Chamber filter pressWash ratio 3:1
04 / ELECTROWINNING

Gold deposited onto cathode

Direct current plates metallic gold onto a stainless-steel cathode. The depleted iodine solution flows back to the regeneration loop — closed circuit, no liquid discharge.

3–6 V DC200–400 A/m²
05 / REGENERATION

Iodine recovered and reused

Iodide is oxidised back to elemental iodine in a dedicated reactor and returned to the leach circuit. Total iodine inventory stays inside the unit — make-up is minimal.

Closed loopMake-up < 0.5%
06 / TAILINGS

Decontaminated solids returned

Depleted solids exit as a dry cake, stable and free of leachable gold and iodine. Suitable for downstream metals recovery or controlled disposal — no liquid effluent stream.

Cake ≤ 25% moistureIodine residue < 10 ppm
IODEx container interior — pumps, reactors, control panel
Pre-mounted pipework, pumps, reactors and control panel — pre-commissioned before shipping. (Image is illustrative)
Why container

Mobile. Permit-light. Closed-loop.

A stationary gold-recovery plant takes 12 to 24 months of permitting, civil works and commissioning before the first kilogram is poured. An IODEx container is delivered, set on flat ground, and producing in 72 hours. The chemistry is closed — nothing leaves the box except decontaminated solids and finished gold.

01

Mobile by design

Built into a standard ISO 20' or 40' HC container. Ship it by truck, rail or sea. Relocate between sites as feedstock moves — no decommissioning, no fixed asset left in the ground.

02

Permit-light classification

Non-stationary equipment classification in most jurisdictions shortens the approval path substantially. No building permit, no fixed-installation environmental impact assessment, no permanent discharge consent.

03

Plug-and-produce

Pre-commissioned at the factory. On site, connect three-phase power, water make-up and an inert-gas line. Cold start to first gold pour in 72 hours. No specialist installation crew on standby.

04

Closed-loop chemistry

Iodine lixiviant recirculates inside the unit. Pregnant solution goes to electrowinning; spent solution regenerates back to iodine. Total liquid effluent: zero. Make-up iodine under 0.5 % per cycle.

05

Environmentally contained

No cyanide. No aqua regia. No acid mist. No groundwater contact. Negative-pressure enclosure captures all vapours through a scrubber. Tailings exit as a dry, stable, iodine-depleted cake.

06

Engineered to your feedstock

Every unit is sized and configured around your specific e-scrap stream — PCBs, RAM, CPU pins, mixed dust. We dial residence time, reactor volume and electrowinning capacity to match the grade and mass flow you actually have.

Specifications

Operating envelope.

Reference parameters for the IOD-LEACH-C20 / C40 series. Final configuration is set per project after feedstock characterisation.

Feedstock 100 kg – 5 t/day Crushed PCBs, RAM, CPU pins, mixed e-scrap. Particle size ≤ 2 mm.
Recovery Au > 98% · Ag > 94% Per batch on standard feed grades. Verified by fire assay.
Footprint 20' / 40' HC ISO container. No civil works. Set on flat ground.
Power 380 V / 3ph / 32–80 kW Agitation, pumps, electrowinning, scrubber combined.
Water make-up < 50 L/day Process water recirculates. Make-up replaces evaporative loss only.
Iodine inventory ~150 L closed Recirculating lixiviant. Make-up under 0.5 % per cycle.
Effluent Zero liquid discharge Tailings exit as dry filter cake, ≤ 25 % moisture.
Startup time 72 hours From container set-down to first gold pour.
Start a project

Tell us what you're processing.

Project enquiries contact@iodex.green
What to include in your first email Feedstock type & daily volume · current recovery method (if any) · site country & grid voltage · target gold output per month. We typically reply within two business days with a preliminary unit configuration and an indicative budget.