Doors Open Day at Bulmint’s refinery welcomed university educators and students

Inspired by National Chemistry Day on May 10, we organised a Doors Open Day at Bulmint’s gold refinery - the first of its kind in Bulgaria and the one with the highest capacity in the Balkans.

On May 18 the expert chemists who run the facility and its adjoined Assay Laboratory, conducted an educational tour for guests from the Paisii Hilendarski University of Plovdiv and colleagues from each of the company’s departments.

A first-of-its-kind in Bulgaria gold refinery

As a Bulgarian manufacturer of investment products made of precious metals, the purity of the gold and silver we use is of crucial importance. The Bulmint-owned refinery and assay laboratory closed the production cycle under one roof, guaranteeing the 999.9 (or 99.99%) purity of every product. A highly qualified and experienced team of chemists conducts all assaying and refining processes and quality control in the facility

We dedicated the event to them, and their desire to share their knowledge inspired us to invite the chemistry community of Plovdiv into the world of precious metals via an exclusive educational tour.

Doors Open Day at Bulmint’s gold refinery

Among our guests on May 18 were students and lecturers of the Faculty of Chemistry of the Paisii Hilendarski University of Plovdiv. Our guests of honour included the deputy dean of scientific research Assoc. Prof. Plamen Angelov, PhD, the deputy dean of academic research Prof. Ginka Atanasova Antova, PhD, and Assoc. Prof. Nina Dimcheva, PhD - head of the Department of Physical Chemistry. We were equally excited to welcome the head of the Analytical Chemistry and Computer Chemistry Department - Assoc. Prof. Kiril Simitchiev, PhD, along with fellow department members Assist. Prof. Evelina Konstantinova Varbanova, PhD, and Assist. Prof. Lidia Kainarova. Our invitation was also graciously accepted by Assist. Prof. Stanimir Petrov Manolov, PhD, from the Organic Chemistry Department and 3rd year Chemical Analyses and Quality Control students. Alongside the representatives of Plovdiv’s chemistry community, members of every department in our company joined in, ready to take a peek inside the almost mystical realm of gold refining.

The evening began with a themed welcome drink - a vibrant selection of cocktails with colours inspired by the groups in the periodic table of elements. Combined with the lighthearted atmosphere and upbeat music, they more than set the mood for the educational part of the event - a tour of the refinery.

Photography inside the premises was strictly prohibited, ensuring that this tour would remain an experience exclusive to those who attended it in person.

All those present got the chance to not only see the machinery up close, but also learn about how each process works and ask the experts conducting the tour additional questions. Bulmint’s seasoned chemists described the science behind gold and silver assaying in words that were equally accessible to those with no scientific background as they were to the university representatives, and even showed the awed crowd genuine gold samples at various stages of refinement.

This initiative was the latest in a long-term campaign aimed at popularising coin minting as a career path among the younger generations - earlier this year we held a similar tour of our production plant for students from the Technical University of Sofia, Plovdiv branch. This time, it was our pleasure to open our doors to future and established chemists of the Plovdiv University.

We would like to extend our gratitude to the guests who joined us on the special day, and to our team of chemists - a heartfelt “Thank you” for the fascinating lecture and the enthusiasm with which they shared their knowledge. Due to the significant interest it garnered, we intend to make the Doors Open Day at Bulmint’s refinery an annual event.