Rice University experts are building on their flash-heat battery recycling method by adding another step that opens the door for more efficient processing of electronic waste, according to lab reports.
E-waste is stacking up at an astounding rate. More than 68 million tons accumulated globally in 2022. Only about 22.3% of it was collected and recycled, all per the World Health Organization.
The Rice team's project could improve those statistics.
"Our process offers significant reductions in operational costs and greenhouse gas emissions, making it a pivotal advancement in sustainable recycling," research team lead Professor James Tour said in a lab summary.
The scientists' existing technique uses high temperatures, called flash joule heating, is able to transform battery materials into substances that are easier to recycle. In the recent breakthrough, the Rice experts explained they applied flash joule heating "chlorination and carbochlorination processes to extract valuable metals, including gallium, indium, and tantalum, from e-waste."
The big takeaway is that by closely controlling the reaction conditions, the team was able to attain a 95% metal purity and an impressive 85% yield of the valuable elements, harvested from capacitors, diodes, and solar films, all per the lab report. What's more, the experts note that the process might be able to extract lithium, among other rare elements, too.
"This breakthrough addresses the pressing issue of critical metal shortages and negative environmental impacts while economically incentivizing recycling industries on a global scale with a more efficient recovery process," study co-first author Shichen Xu said in the summary.
Better recycling can be a boon to the battery, electronics, and solar panel industries, as they all require expensive, hard-to-gather metals that are often subject to sometimes troublesome foreign supply chains.
E-waste recycling is a sector getting heavy investment from the government, as well. And other innovations — like circuit boards that dissolve in hot water — are already making headlines.
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Rice's experts cite environmental benefits to recycling science, including reducing mining, deforestation, and water and air pollution. Their technique is superior to existing processes because it avoids "harmful waste streams" and "large amounts of acid" — all while using less energy, per the summary.
It's important to note that even with some of those cons, batteries continue to power cleaner rides when energizing electric vehicles. Each EV prevents thousands of pounds of heat-trapping air pollution annually when it replaces a gas-burner.
Smart reuse is a concept that can be applied to much of the products we use each day. Simply choosing plastic-free alternatives often provides better experiences while avoiding throwaway junk that ends up in landfill.
For their part, the Rice researchers don't plan on becoming idle owls. The report stated the ambition is to expand the kinds of elements that can be harvested with their unique process.
And e-waste seems to be a smart industry for investment. The Brainy Insights, a market research firm, reports that the sector is expected to grow from $25 billion to more than $130 billion within the decade.
"We are trying to adapt this method for recovery of other critical metals," study co-first author Bing Deng, from China's Tsinghua University, said.
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