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Recycling
Special Issues
Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste
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Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste

A special issue of Recycling (ISSN 2313-4321).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 10304

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Dechao Hu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. School of Materials Science and Hydrogen Energy, Foshan University, Foshan, China
2. Guangdong Key Laboratory for Hydrogen Energy Technologies, Foshan, China
Interests: sustainable composites; recycling of E-wastes; functional polymer composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Zhixin Jia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China
2. Key Lab of Guangdong High Property and Functional Macromolecular Materials, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China
Interests: recycling of E-wastes; high-performance rubbers; polymer composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

E-waste is the fastest-growing solid waste stream worldwide, and contains large amounts of valuable metals. It is thus considered an attractive polymetallic secondary source and known as “urban mine”. Particularly, the purity of precious metals in waste printed circuit boards is much higher than that of those in rich ore, sparking intensive interest in researchers to extract valuable metals from e-waste. 

However, in addition to these valuable metals, many residual heavy metals (e.g., Cd, Hg, Pb, Cr) and hazardous materials in e-waste may lead to increased toxicity in the ecosystem. Environment-friendly, efficient, and cost-effective recovery technologies have been an urgent demand for the recycling of metals from e-waste. Moreover, the high-valued reutilization of nonmetallic materials in e-waste is also crucially important for the comprehensive recycling of e-waste and the development of circular economy.

This Special Issue of Recycling is designed to gather scientific papers on the recovery of valuable metallic and nonmetallic materials from e-waste. In this Special Issue, original research articles, short communications, and review articles are welcome. Research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Physical/chemical recycling techniques (pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, electrometallurgy);
  • Biological processes for metal recovery (bioleaching, biosorption, phytoremediation, bio-electrochemical systems);
  • Recovery of valuable materials from waste printed circuit boards;
  • New green technologies for materials recycling from e-waste;
  • Strategies for overcoming the toxicity of e-waste;
  • High-value reutilization of nonmetallic materials in e-waste;
  • Sustainable composites based on nonmetallic materials in e-waste.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Molecules.

Dr. Dechao Hu
Dr. Zhixin Jia
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Recycling is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • electronic waste
  • metal recovery
  • waste printed circuit boards
  • hydrometallurgy
  • chemical leaching
  • bioleaching
  • waste management
  • reutilization of nonmetallic materials

Published Papers (4 papers)

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15 pages, 3179 KiB  
Article
Two-Step Bio-Dissolution of Metals from Printed Circuit Boards Using Acidophilic Iron- and Sulfur-Oxidizing Mesophiles
by Kundani Magoda, Philiswa N. Nomngongo and Lukhanyo Mekuto
Recycling 2024, 9(1), 6; https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling9010006 - 18 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1731
Abstract
To date, electronic waste (e-waste) is the fastest-growing waste stream worldwide due to technological advancement and the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Although e-waste is an environmental hazard, these materials are considered good secondary sources of metals. This study examined the bioleaching [...] Read more.
To date, electronic waste (e-waste) is the fastest-growing waste stream worldwide due to technological advancement and the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Although e-waste is an environmental hazard, these materials are considered good secondary sources of metals. This study examined the bioleaching of metals from printed circuit boards, where a two-step bioleaching approach was used with iron–sulfur-oxidizing microorganisms at different e-waste particle sizes. The metal analysis from the different particle sizes (PSs) showed that copper (Cu), tin (Sn), and lead (Pb) were predominantly deposited in the coarser fraction, ranging from 500 to 710 µm at 28.7, 20.5, and 11.1 wt.%, respectively. On the other hand, metals such as iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), and aluminum (Al) were mostly deposited in the finer fraction, which ranged from 38 to 150 µm at 37.3, 5.9, 8.8, 1.3, and 4.2 wt.%, respectively. After the bioleaching process, it was observed that higher metal extraction occurred at a PS ranging from 38 to 150 µm, which achieved recovery efficiency rates of 62.9%, 68.2%, 95.3%, 86.1%, 61.9%, 47.2%, 21.2%, and 63.6% for Al, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn, and Zn, respectively, over 10 days. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste)
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19 pages, 3559 KiB  
Article
The Potential Material Flow of WEEE in a Data-Constrained Environment—The Case of Jordan
by Laila A. Al-Khatib and Feras Y. Fraige
Recycling 2024, 9(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling9010004 - 9 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1996
Abstract
The rising concerns about electric and electronic equipment waste (WEEE) come from the rapid increase in demand for appliances and the decreasing lifetimes of equipment. Setting a sustainable WEEE management system that exploits this secondary resource is paramount to maximize resource efficiency, mitigate [...] Read more.
The rising concerns about electric and electronic equipment waste (WEEE) come from the rapid increase in demand for appliances and the decreasing lifetimes of equipment. Setting a sustainable WEEE management system that exploits this secondary resource is paramount to maximize resource efficiency, mitigate its environmental impact, and stimulate the circular economy. This paper aims, for the first time, to quantify the material flow expected from recycling the generated WEEE, propose the number of plants required to recycle this secondary resource, and outline the expected economic and environmental benefits that could be achieved from recycling operations. The findings of material flow calculations show that the amount of steel, copper, and aluminum is predominant in the WEEE composition. Also, the expected metal content in WEEE in 2022 is approximately 26 kt, 3.3 kt, and 2.5 kt, respectively. These are expected to substantially increase to approximately 109 kt, 11.9 kt, and 9 kt for the three metals in 2050, respectively. Other valuable metals are doubling their quantities between 2022 and 2050 to reach approximately 1133 kg silver and 475 kg gold. Approximately, four treatment plants are required to recover these materials in 2030 with relative installation costs of USD 100 million. The forecasted financial revenues of recovering materials included in WEEE and indicators for environmental impact based on life cycle assessment (LCA) are calculated. The results of this study can serve as a preliminary reference for future usage in guiding effective planning for WEEE recycling and sustainable management in the country. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste)
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27 pages, 13352 KiB  
Article
Multi-Layer Ceramic Capacitors in Lighting Equipment: Presence and Characterisation of Rare Earth Elements and Precious Metals
by Konstantinos M. Sideris, Dimitrios Fragoulis, Vassilis N. Stathopoulos and Panagiotis Sinioros
Recycling 2023, 8(6), 97; https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling8060097 - 4 Dec 2023
Viewed by 2081
Abstract
The need to reduce energy consumption in buildings, the emergence of light-emitting diode (LED) lamps in lighting around 2010, their long lifetime, and the 2025 target to use only LED lamps are changing the existing composition of Category 3 waste electrical–electronic equipment (WEEE) [...] Read more.
The need to reduce energy consumption in buildings, the emergence of light-emitting diode (LED) lamps in lighting around 2010, their long lifetime, and the 2025 target to use only LED lamps are changing the existing composition of Category 3 waste electrical–electronic equipment (WEEE) and creating expectations for simple, high-concentration recycling streams. In this study, multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) detached from the lighting sector’s WEEE were characterised for the presence of rare earth elements (REEs) and precious metals (PMs). Their digestion was carried out with HNO3 and aqua regia on a heating plate and characterised using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX). The contents of REEs and PMs found in the MLCCs were 0.84 wt% and 0.60 wt%, respectively, and create an economic stored value that is essentially defined by PMs of 98.67% and by palladium (Pd) of 78.37%. The analysis showed that the content of the main elements was: neodymium (Nd) 0.366 wt%, yttrium (Y) 0.220 wt%, dysprosium (Dy) 0.131 wt%, silver (Ag) 0.467 wt%, and Pd 0.105 wt%. These results indicate the need for selective removal and separate recycling processes of MLCCs from WEEE drivers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste)
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13 pages, 5835 KiB  
Article
Precious Metal Recovery from Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment through Oxidative Refining
by Eunmi Park, Minji Kim, Min-Wook Pin, Hyunsik Park and Yong-Hwan Kim
Recycling 2023, 8(5), 80; https://doi.org/10.3390/recycling8050080 - 16 Oct 2023
Viewed by 3549
Abstract
This study delves into the application of oxidative refining for the recovery and concentration of precious metals, namely palladium (Pd) and gold (Au), from waste electrical and electronic equipment by WEEE recycling, leveraging pyrometallurgical techniques. The primary objective is to optimize refining parameters, [...] Read more.
This study delves into the application of oxidative refining for the recovery and concentration of precious metals, namely palladium (Pd) and gold (Au), from waste electrical and electronic equipment by WEEE recycling, leveraging pyrometallurgical techniques. The primary objective is to optimize refining parameters, encompassing variations in gas pressure, temperature, and gas composition, to maximize the extraction and purification of precious metals from recycled materials. Through an array of comprehensive characterization techniques, encompassing microstructural analysis, elemental composition assessment, and metal concentration measurement, this study scrutinizes the potential of oxidative refining. The conclusive findings underscore the remarkable potential of oxidative refining in augmenting the efficiency and effectiveness of metal recovery from waste printed circuit boards (PCBs), with a pronounced emphasis on the concentration of Pd and Au. This research not only highlights the promise of oxidative refining but also concludes that optimizing process parameters, such as a N2/O2 mixed gas pressure of 4 L/min, a process time of 40 min, and a temperature of 1400 °C, is imperative for achieving the highest efficiency in metal recovery from electronic waste, especially precious metals like Pd and Au. It further contributes to the sustainable management of electronic waste and the strategic extraction of valuable precious metals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery of Valuable Metals and Nonmetals from E-Waste)
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