Are hard drive platters worth anything?

Are hard drive platters worth anything?

The logic boards off a scrap hard drive are considered a premium grade of circuit board scrap. They are worth more than computer motherboards because they are more densely packed with trace amounts of precious metals (parts per million). Neodymium is a rare earth metal that corrodes rather quickly.

What metal is used in hard drives?

Platters are typically made using an aluminium, glass or ceramic substrate. As of 2015, laptop hard drive platters are made from glass while aluminum platters are often found in desktop computers.

How many layers does a hard drive have?

The three different layers within a disk platter are illustrated in Figure 4-1, which shows both the top and bottom sides of a platter. Substrates are made from a variety of materials, including aluminum/magnesium alloys, glass, and ceramic materials.

What are hard drive platters coated with?

The platters are made from a non-magnetic material, usually aluminum alloy, glass, or ceramic. They are coated with a shallow layer of magnetic material typically 10–20 nm in-depth, with an outer layer of carbon for protection.

What is the disc in a hard drive made of?

Hard disks are flat circular plates made of aluminum or glass and coated with a magnetic material. Hard disks for personal computers can store terabytes (trillions of bytes) of information. Data are stored on their surfaces in concentric tracks.

What can I do with old hard drive platters?

The above video has all the steps you need to disassemble the drive and use its parts.

1. DIY Magnetic Knife Block. Hard disk drives contain large neodymium magnets.
2. Cubicle Rear View Mirror (or Other Mirrors)
3. Turn Platters Into a Geeky Wind Chime.
4. Make a Hidden Safe With a Hard Drive Case.
5. Fancy Hard Drive Clock.

Where is the platinum in a hard drive?

Find the hard drive. The location of a hard drive varies from one model of computer to the next, and will most likely require you to take the computer apart using the screwdriver. It resembles a small, rectangular box, and contains a disc that looks like a CD. This disc is the component that contains the platinum.

How much gold is in old hard drives?

Some reports tell us that an entire old-school PC contained an eye-watering $9 worth of gold. But that’s not counting the cost of removing it. Some other sources estimate that your average computer contains about 1/5th of a gram, or about $12 worth, of gold in them.

What are the names inside of a hard disk drive?

The hard drive, which typically provides storage for data and applications within a computer, has four key components inside its casing — the platter (for storing data), the spindle (for spinning the platters), the read/write arm (for reading and writing data) and the actuator (for controlling the actions of the read/ …

What is the disc inside a hard drive made of?

Hard disks are flat circular plates made of aluminum or glass and coated with a magnetic material. Hard disks for personal computers can store terabytes (trillions of bytes) of information.

Which material is used for coating of platter?

Each platter is usually made from a thin sheet of aluminum or glass. The magnetic coating is generally a ferric oxide or a cobalt alloy, which is, in turn, covered by a thin layer of a very hard material and, finally, by a thin layer of lubricant.

What makes up the media layer of a hard drive?

The media layer is a thin coating of magnetic material applied to the surface of the platters and where the actual data is stored. Its thickness is only a few millionths of an inch. Special techniques are employed for the deposition of magnetic material on the substrate material.

What are the physical components of a hard drive?

Hard drive physical components. PLATTERS: Platter is a circular, metal disk that is mounted inside a hard disk drive. Several platters are mounted on a fixed spindle motor to create more data storage surfaces in a smaller area. The platter has a core made up of aluminium or glass substrate, covered with a thin layer of Ferric oxide or cobalt alloy.

What makes up the bottom of a hard disk?

The bottom of the disk is also called base casting. The drive mechanics are placed in the base casting and a cover, usually made up of aluminium is placed on top to enclose heads and platters. The entire contents placed on the base and cover chamber are collectively known as the head-disk assembly.

How big are the hard disk drive platters?

Platters vary in size and hard disk drives come in two form factors, 5.25in or 3.5in. The trend is towards glass technology since this has the better heat resistance properties and allows platters to be made thinner than aluminium ones. The inside of a hard disk drive must be kept as dust-free as the factory where it was built.