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Cobalt and Stellite scrap
There is no single cobalt scrap price: Stellite valve seats, cobalt alloy turnings and hardfacing rod ends are each quoted on their own. We buy all of them and pay cash where state law allows. Send photos for a quote or call (877) 838-9920.
Cobalt, cobalt alloys and Stellite
Cobalt is a silvery-gray metal with a high melting point. USGS adds that it is ferromagnetic and holds on to that magnetism at a higher temperature than any other metal.
USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 estimates that 51% of the cobalt consumed in the United States in 2025 went into superalloys, mainly for aircraft gas turbine engines. ITIA names Stellite 31 as one cobalt-based superalloy, used for static, non-rotating parts such as the combustor.
USGS's 2011 tungsten recycling study describes Stellites as "a class of alloys containing cobalt, chromium, and tungsten, which are characterized by their ability to resist all types of wear, particularly at elevated temperatures and under corrosive conditions." The same report notes that Stellite is a registered trademark; we use the name only to describe the alloy.
Cobalt is also on the federal Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals, published November 7, 2025; USGS notes its use in batteries and in alloys built for extreme temperatures.
Sources: USGS Circular 1196-A-M, Flow studies for recycling metal commodities (2004; cobalt chapter, 1998 data); USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: cobalt; ITIA Newsletter, March 2017; USGS Circular 1196-R, Tungsten Recycling in the United States in 2000 (2011); Federal Register: Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals; USGS: Interior Department releases final 2025 List of Critical Minerals.
Where Stellite scrap and cobalt alloy scrap come from
Hardfacing is a wear-resistant layer welded onto the working face of a part. A 2018 paper on OSTI says hardfacing alloys resist wear in unlubricated sliding and calls Stellite 6 a cobalt-based hardfacing alloy used in nuclear valves.
An April 1999 report prepared for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission says that in most gate valves the disc seats and the valve body seats are hardfaced with Stellite 6. Brookhaven National Laboratory wrote in 2001 that cobalt-based hard-surfacing alloys have been used in nuclear power plant components "because of their excellent wear and corrosion resistance."
In its study of US cobalt recycling in 1998, USGS gave turbine engine parts from dismantled military aircraft as its example of cobalt-bearing old scrap.
The forms we take:
- Solids: valve seats and discs, cast wear parts, sleeves and bushings.
- Welding rod: unused hardfacing rod and rod stubs, kept by alloy.
- Hardfaced parts: valve trim and other parts with a cobalt overlay, as they came out of service.
- Turnings and grindings: drained of coolant, one alloy per drum.
- Engine parts: combustor and other static parts. Nickel-base engine alloys go on our Inconel and nickel alloys page.
Sources: OSTI: Development of a gall-resistant stainless-steel hardfacing alloy (2018); OSTI record 1471842 (Materials & Design, 2018); OSTI: Summary and evaluation of NRC-sponsored Stellite 6 aging and friction tests (INEEL, April 1999); OSTI: Investigation in hardsurfacing a nickel-copper alloy (Brookhaven National Laboratory, 2001); USGS Circular 1196-A-M (2004; cobalt chapter, 1998 data); ITIA Newsletter, March 2017.
Keep cobalt alloys apart from carbide and cobalt steel
Cobalt turns up in three kinds of scrap that look alike in a bin and are recycled in different ways.
- Cobalt alloys such as Stellite, where cobalt is the base. USGS describes this alloy scrap being sorted and returned to melters.
- Carbide, where cobalt is only the binder holding the tungsten carbide grains. NTP puts most commercial grades at 3% to 16% cobalt, and USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 estimates that 9% of US cobalt consumption in 2025 went into cemented carbides. USGS describes carbide scrap going through the zinc process or a chemical process, a separate route from the alloy melters.
- Cobalt high-speed steel, which USGS counts among the cobalt-bearing steels. Cobalt drills and taps belong on our high-speed steel page.
Sorters start with shape, color and weight, USGS says, then use a magnet, the spark off a grinding wheel, or chemical analysis. Label each bag from the drawing, the job traveler or the valve tag (Stellite 6, another cobalt alloy, or unknown), and put inserts and end mills in the carbide bucket. Our carbide pages list every form we buy.
Sources: USGS Circular 1196-A-M (2004; cobalt chapter, 1998 data); NTP background document: cobalt-tungsten carbide hard metals (2009); USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: cobalt; USGS Open-File Report 2005-1028: tungsten recycling; USGS Professional Paper 1802-F: cobalt (2017).
Ship it whole: cobalt dust is the hazard
OSHA's sawmill guide warns that "Stellite tipped saw blades generate a fine dust containing cobalt when sharpened." OSHA says breathing that dust may scar the lungs, and that cobalt dust can form explosive mixtures in air.
The federal OSHA limit for cobalt metal, dust and fume is 0.1 milligram per cubic meter of air, averaged over an 8-hour shift. Cal/OSHA, California's own program, sets 0.02 milligram per cubic meter, five times tighter.
So leave the hardfacing on and send parts as they are, with turnings sealed in containers that cannot sift on the road.
Sources: OSHA Sawmills eTool: cobalt dust; OSHA Occupational Chemical Database: cobalt metal, dust and fume.
What moves cobalt scrap metal prices
We do not post a cobalt scrap price. Every lot is quoted on its own, and the cobalt in it trades on a jumpy world market. USGS's Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 gives the average US spot price of cobalt cathode, which is refined metal and not scrap, as $30.78 a pound in 2022, $16.77 in 2024 and an estimated $21 in 2025.
Supply sits in few hands. The same edition says Congo (Kinshasa) mined an estimated 73% of the world's cobalt in 2025, temporarily banned cobalt exports that February and replaced the ban with export quotas in October. The cobalt in purchased scrap covered 25% of estimated US cobalt consumption that year.
USGS noted in its study of 1998 cobalt recycling that how much cobalt gets recycled depends on the type of scrap as well as the price. A known alloy, solid pieces, dry turnings and one alloy per container all make a lot easier to melt again.
Sources: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: cobalt; USGS Circular 1196-A-M (2004; cobalt chapter, 1998 data).
How to sell cobalt scrap
Open the quote form, tick Exotic metals and write what you have: Stellite, a cobalt superalloy, hardfaced valve parts, or unknown. Add photos of each bag or drum and a rough weight. Or email the same to help@carbidebuyerusa.com, or call (877) 838-9920.
Ship from anywhere in the United States and we pay the shipping. In California, Arizona and Nevada we come to you and pick up, in any city. We pay cash where state law allows. In Arizona, a scrap metal sale of $300 or more is paid by check or money order mailed to the address on the seller's ID. In Nevada, a scrap metal purchase of $150 or more is paid only by check or electronic transfer. Our rules guide covers both.
We buy carbide too, and it is still our main line. Bag worn inserts on their own and add them to the shipment (selling carbide scrap).
Sources: Arizona Revised Statutes 44-1642; Nevada Revised Statutes chapter 647.
Questions sellers ask
What is the cobalt scrap price per pound today?
We do not publish one. Each lot is quoted from its alloy, form, cleanliness and weight against a cobalt market that keeps moving. Send photos and a weight through the quote form for a quote on yours.
Do you buy Stellite scrap that is still welded to a part?
Yes. Send hardfaced valve discs, seats and other parts as they are, and tell us what each part is and, if you know it, the base metal under the overlay.
Is the cobalt in carbide inserts the same as cobalt scrap?
No. In carbide the cobalt is a small share of the weight and only binds the tungsten carbide grains, so inserts are sold and recycled as carbide. See what tungsten carbide is.
Keep reading
Inconel and nickel alloys
Inconel, Hastelloy, Monel and other nickel alloys
Learn more
High-speed steel scrap
HSS and cobalt drills, taps and tool steel
Learn more
Tungsten scrap
Tungsten heavy alloy, rod, wire and pure tungsten
Learn more
What we buy
Carbide in any form, plus exotic metals and alloys
Learn moreGet a quote for your carbide
Tell us what form it is in, about how much it weighs, and send a few photos. Ship it to us from anywhere in the US and we pay the shipping, or we pick up in California, Arizona and Nevada.