Printed Circuit Board Leached Residue as a Substitute Reducing Agent in Pyrometallurgical Processes

摘要: The proliferation of technology has resulted in the rise of electronic waste (e-waste) generated. The main focus of recycling e-waste has been to recover the metallic fractions from printed circuit boards (PCBs) due to the inherent high value of metals present such as gold. Hydrometallurgical route, often the most preferred option for recovering the metals, does not address the issue posed by the non-metallic part. In this study, the use of leach residue of PCB as reducing agent in hematite reduction was investigated. The analysis on the leached boards showed that PCB is highly amorphous and has carbon content of 30.10%, oxygen content of 20.1%, and ash and volatile matter of 40.1% and 44.8%, respectively. Thermodynamic modelling and laboratory-scale experiments that simulate solid-state reduction of hematite were performed using FactSage™ and single particle reactor. The results revealed that PCB can be …