--- title: Human Waste May Contain Gold, Research Finds description: Researchers have detected trace amounts of gold, silver and other precious metals in human waste, new research says. canonical: https://time.com/3755611/human-waste-gold-sewage-research/ author: Sabrina Toppa article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-24T07:10:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:17:36.932Z article:section: Science og:title: Human Waste Contains Gold og:description: But it's unlikely to make you stinking rich. og:url: https://time.com/3755611/human-waste-gold-sewage-research/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcf5b18f3ff1add51/698784eb428a9e5250cc7c5b/128558413.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Gold og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Human Waste Contains Gold twitter:description: But it's unlikely to make you stinking rich. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcf5b18f3ff1add51/698784eb428a9e5250cc7c5b/128558413.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Stinking Rich? Human Waste Contains Gold, Research Finds by [Sabrina Toppa](/author/sabrina-toppa/) ## Sabrina Toppa Mar 24, 2015 7:10 AM CUT  Gold is the most malleable and ductile metal; a single gram can be beaten into a sheet of one square meter, or an ounce into 300 square feet Gold is the most malleable and ductile metal; a single gram can be beaten into a sheet of one square meter, or an ounce into 300 square feetCharles D. Winters—Getty Images by [Sabrina Toppa](/author/sabrina-toppa/) ## Sabrina Toppa Mar 24, 2015 7:10 AM CUT Researchers have [detected](http://www.eurekalert.org/pub%5Freleases/2015-03/acs-s-y022015.php "undefined") trace amounts of gold, silver and other precious metals in human waste and are exploring how to make their extraction commercially feasible — a move that may stymie the dispersal of metals in the environment and lessen our dependence on mining. Deploying an electron microscope, Dr. Kathleen Smith and her team spent eight years unearthing minuscule metal particles in treated solid waste. “The gold we found was at the level of a minimal mineral deposit,” Smith said, meaning that a similar dispersion in rock would be profitable enough for traditional mining. Other metals recovered include silver and platinum. Smith says metals are ubiquitous in our sewer drains, ranging from those in our personal grooming products to odor-neutralizing nanoparticles sprayed on socks. These metals crop up in wastewater treatment plants, where they can be recovered through leaching. “We’re interested in collecting valuable metals that could be sold, including some of the more technologically important metals, such as vanadium and copper that are in cell phones, computers and alloys,” Smith said. Separate research [estimated](http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es505329q "undefined") that metals valued at $13 million could be recovered through the waste of a million Americans alone. \[[_EurekAlert!_](http://www.eurekalert.org/pub%5Freleases/2015-03/acs-s-y022015.php "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3755611/human-waste-gold-sewage-research/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3755611/human-waste-gold-sewage-research/"},"headline":"Stinking Rich? 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