Recovery of valuable materials from e-waste using organic solvent

<p>Sushant B Wath</p>

Recovery of valuable materials from e-waste using organic solvent

Sushant B Wath

National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), India

: Expert Opin Environ Biol

Abstract

Processing and treatment of waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) which is abide of valuable and hazardous materials is a big challenge, due to its complex and discrete make-up across manufacturers and therefore for the recycling of WPCBs and recovery of valuable materials, novel and improved processes are needed. In the present study, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) is used as a solvent for processing of WPCBs with respect to WPCB sizes, solid to liquid (S/L) ratio; temperature and time were investigated by dissolving bromine epoxy resin. Experimental results showed that the dissolution rate of the bromine epoxy resin increased with respect to various parameters studied. The optimum condition of thorough separation of WPCBs was S/L ratio of 1:5 and WPCB size/area of 4 mm/16 mm2 and 100oC for 90 min. The used NMP were vaporised and condensed for retrieving regenerated NMP. NMP as solvent can be an effective option for the separation and recovery of various valuable materials such as metals, glass fibres, etc. from WPCBs.