Microfluidic solvent extraction (mu SX) of platinum and palladium from chloride leach solution using Alamine 336 had been conducted. The leach solution was produced by leaching of spent automotive catalysts. A microfluidic Y-Y channel embedded in a Pyrex (TM) microchip was used as the extraction system. Platinum and palladium extractions (>99%) occurred at mu SX contact time as fast as 1 s with subsequent marginal extraction efficiency increases for longer contact times with comparable extraction performance to that of bulk SX. Findings from this preliminary study are useful in initiating a new metallurgical technique in the field of recovering precious (high-value) metals present in low concentrations which are otherwise not technically amenable (or economically viable) to extraction using current conventional methods. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.