Process for the recovery of precious metal from petrochemical process residues

A process for the recovery of a precious metal from an oil comprising a precious metal and organic compounds, the process comprising:

• atomizing the oil;
• combusting the atomized oil to produce an off-gas;
• and
• passing the off-gas over a precious metal collector to separate oil combustion residue containing a precious metal from the remainder of the off-gas, wherein the residue is non-gaseous at 20° C. and 105 Pa, wherein
• the combustion takes place in an enclosed furnace chamber with an exhaust or abatement system, wherein the furnace chamber is equipped with the precious metal collector;
• the precious metal collector is an air- or water-cooled container;
• and
• the oil combustion residue becomes deposited on walls of the precious metal collector as the off-gas passes through the precious metal collector.