Efficient recycling of electronic waste

As part of the FFG programme "Research for the Economy", the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland is developing a novel process to recover metals from electronic waste more efficiently, more cleanly and more economically for companies.

Electronic waste is a valuable source of secondary raw materials: mobile phones and circuit boards contain dozens of materials, including copper, precious metals and critical metals such as indium, gallium and germanium. Conventional recycling processes have not yet succeeded in optimally making the individual elements usable for reuse.

The eWasteToMaterial approach is based on targeted pyrolytic pre-treatment. This involves the controlled decomposition of plastics in electronic waste, with the resulting pyrolysis gases being used to generate energy. The metals are then left in the solid residue and can be separated more easily using physical and chemical methods.

The research involves adapting a laboratory pyrolysis plant (1-2 kg/h throughput) and a pilot plant (10-20 kg/h throughput) to determine the optimal operating parameters. The experiments focus on the separation of halogens, the analysis of pyrolysis products using GC/MS and FTIR, and compliance with legal emission limits. Sustainability, economic and technical analyses accompany the development in order to evaluate the efficiency and environmental compatibility of the process.

The integration of sustainability and economic analyses pursues a holistic approach that offers both ecological and economic advantages and creates new business opportunities for companies.