Advanced melting and metal consolidation
At Sibanye-Stillwater Recycling operations, our precious metal melt department is an integral component of our precious metal recycling and refining operations. Designed to safely and efficiently consolidate precious metal-bearing materials, this department utilizes high-temperature induction melting technology to support accurate recovery, refining, and value realization.
Our melting furnaces are engineered to process a wide range of materials and volumes, enabling precise control and consistent outcomes across diverse precious metal streams.
Why precious metal melting matters
Precious metal-bearing materials require controlled melting and consolidation to ensure accurate recovery and refining. Without properly engineered melting systems and skilled operation, valuable metals can be lost or improperly recovered.
Partnering with Sibanye-Stillwater’s Recycling operations ensures:
- Efficient consolidation into homogeneous metal form
- Improved refining accuracy and precious metal recovery
- Secure handling of low- to high-grade materials
- Support for circular economy and sustainability initiatives
Specialized platinum furnace capability
Our platinum furnace is a specialized asset available at only a limited number of precious metal recycling and refining facilities worldwide. Processing platinum requires exceptional technical skill, precise temperature control, and extensive operator experience — capabilities that define Sibanye-Stillwater Recycling operations.
This specialized furnace enables secure and efficient melting of platinum and platinum-rich materials while preserving metal integrity and value.
Flexible and scalable melting capacity
Our precious metal melting furnaces offer exceptional flexibility, with capacity ranging from just a few troy ounces to 2,000 pounds. This scalability enables us to support both small, specialized lots and large industrial consignments while maintaining consistent quality and control.
Environmental, health & safety
All exhaust generated during the precious-metal melting process is captured and treated using advanced air filtration systems. These controls support regulatory compliance and reflect our ongoing commitment to environmental health and safety.
Know your metals
The Know your metals resource helps you understand how precious metals are used across industries. Explore each metal’s commercial applications, the types of waste streams it commonly appears in, and the recovery technologies used to reclaim it.
Au
Gold
Ag
Silver
Pt
Platinum
Pd
Palladium
Rh
Rhodium
Ir
Iridium
Gold
Gold is a critical precious metal valued for its excellent conductivity, corrosion resistance, and stability, with extensive use in semiconductor fabrication, electroplating, connector fabrication and assembly, medical device and jewelry manufacturing.
Gold frequently occurs in industrial waste streams such as spent plating solutions, filters, resin, sludges, stamping scrap, contact pins and karat jewelry.
Silver
Silver is a widely used precious metal known for its high electrical conductivity, antimicrobial properties, and reflectivity, making it essential in microelectronics, medical applications, film coating, chemical processing, jewelry manufacturing, electroplating and stamping industries.
Silver-bearing waste streams often include spent plating baths, filters, sludges and stampings.
Explore silver-bearing waste streams:
Platinum
Platinum is a critical precious metal widely used in pharmaceutical catalysts, jewelry manufacturing, automotive catalytic converters, fuel cell/electrolyzer applications, fiberglass manufacturing, and the aircraft/aerospace, microelectronics and medical industries.
Due to its chemical stability and catalytic properties, platinum frequently appears in industrial waste streams such as spent catalyst, acidic process solutions, plating baths, filter media, implantable medical components, fiberglass bushings and refractory, fuel cell MEAs, thermocouple wire, machining kerf, shavings and turnings.
Explore platinum-bearing waste streams:
- Jewellery manufacture
- Discarded electronic devices and electronics manufacturing
- Electroplating operations
- Medical device manufacturing and healthcare operations
- Defense manufacturing and maintenance operations
- Glass manufacturing
- Pharmaceuticals manufacture
- Industrial catalysts
- Automotive catalytic converters
- Nitric acid manufacture
Palladium
Palladium is a precious metal widely used in automotive catalytic converters, specialty chemical catalyst, conductive pastes, microelectronics/ceramic capacitors.
Owing to its excellent catalytic performance and electrical conductivity, palladium is commonly found in industrial waste streams such as spent catalysts, sludges, filter media, fired/green ceramic, thick film wipes & jars, canned/decanned catalytic converters and spent environmental catalysts.
Explore palladium-bearing waste streams:
- Jewellery manufacture
- Discarded electronic devices and electronics manufacturing
- Electroplating operations
- Medical device manufacturing and healthcare operations
- Defense manufacturing and maintenance operations
- Pharmaceuticals manufacture
- Industrial catalysts
- Automotive catalytic converters
- Nitric acid manufacture
Rhodium
Rhodium is a rare and valuable precious metal primarily used in automotive catalytic converters, chemical catalysts, fiberglass manufacturing, and plating industries.
Its high reflectivity and resistance to corrosion result in rhodium being found in waste streams including catalytic converters, spent plating baths, filters, fiberglass bushings and refractory.
Explore rhodium-bearing waste streams:
Iridium
Iridium is an extremely durable and corrosion-resistant precious metal used in chemical processing equipment, fuel cell manufacturing, specialty catalyst, and medical devices.
Due to its use in high-temperature and highly corrosive environments, iridium is commonly found in waste streams including electrolyzer scrap, spent coating solutions, spent catalyst and filters, medical device components such as electrodes, marker bands and cath tips.
Explore iridium-bearing waste streams:
Integrated processing across departments
The precious metal melt department works in close coordination with our mechanical reduction, thermal reduction, and wet chemistry departments, enabling seamless material flow, optimized recovery pathways, and consistent outcomes across the precious metal recycling process.
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Mechanical reduction
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Thermal reduction
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Wet chemistry
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Precious metal melt
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Auto catalyst recycling
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Electronic material classification
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Bead blasting
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Cleaning & recovery
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Granulation
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Transportation & logistics
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Analytical laboratory
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Partner with Sibanye-Stillwater Recycling operations
We support our partners with customized recycling programs aligned to their business and sustainability goals. Our experienced teams collaborate closely with customers to improve recovery efficiency, ensure regulatory compliance, and convert precious metal materials into measurable value.
