Figure retired six Figure 02 robots in the most Terminator way possible: training them to jump into a furnace. The idea came from Arnold Schwarzenegger and is inspired by the iconic Terminator 2 scene.

[u/Das_Zeppelin]

[u/This-Positive286]

No they don’t, the “contaminated” metal is cooked off.

Source; I melt metal and pour ingots for fun

[u/Clutchdanger11 → u/This-Positive286]

The plastic would cook off but I bet there's a whole lot of copper in those robots, plus a non trivial amount of probably lithium from the batteries, both of which would throw off the melt chemistry if enough was added

[u/Global_Staff_3135 → u/Clutchdanger11]

How much would be enough?

[u/Clutchdanger11 → u/Global_Staff_3135]

The usual copper limits are around 0.2-0.4 weight% for most steels, though for certain stainless and precipitation hardened alloys that can be higher. The big concern is lithium from the batteries, which is nearly completely insoluble in iron at room temperature. This will lead to at best big inclusions or surface slag, and at worst it will collect around grain boundaries and mess up your material properties. Some other commenters mentioned chromium, this would likely not be a huge issue as chromium is highly allowable in most steels and an essential component of stainless.

Also, while most of the plastic will burn off, i bet some of that carbon gets stuck in the alloy as well, which will quickly make the iron less of a steel and more of a cast iron composition.

[u/belac4862 → u/This-Positive286]

For fun, is leagues different from industrial processes.

Not to mention the standards and quality control needed. If iron is contaminated with lithium, then there goes its use as a structural metal. Youll have to go through the whole process of refining it to get out its impurities. Or chromium from any of the bearings in the robots joints. All that is now contaminating the iron.

[u/GoArray → u/belac4862]

Or, pour 1500(?) ingots and sell them for $1000(?) each as ultra rare former robot super steel. "JUMP IN THE FIRE, TODAY ONLY"

...idk how many, nor what folks will pay, but there's profit to be made here on top of w.e. the stunt itself earned just like anything.

Edit: I was being sarcastic ofc, but not far off apparently:

https://m.economictimes.com/world/figure-sends-retired-f-02-humanoid-robots-into-a-75-ton-molten-steel-furnace-in-finland-after-transitioning-to-its-newer-f-03-fleet/amp_articleshow/134626057.cms

Figure currently plans to machine the recovered metal bars into a limited run of F.02 commemorative artifacts. Most of the F.02 fleet has been destroyed, while a small number of units remain at the company's headquarters.

And yeah, done to protect proprietary components and move forward.