Chemical Reaction
The chemical reaction for the dissolution of gold, the "Elsner Equation", follows:
- 4 Au + 8 NaCN + O2 + 2 H2O → 4 Na + 4 NaOH
In this redox process, oxygen removes, via a two step reaction, one electron from each gold atom to form the complex Au(CN)2- ion.
Read more about this topic: Gold Cyanidation
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