Supercritical Water Processing of Electronic Waste for Generating Value Added Products

Electronic waste is one of the largest intensifying waste streams in the world. Although some traditional disposal methods are available to process electronic waste, these methods have several disadvantages from both the economic and environmental perspective. Some processes create challenging gases that require expensive clean-up, while others use harmful and toxic solvents which create air, water and soil pollution. As a result, we need to consider an alternative pathway for electronic waste disposal which can facilitate the recycling process. This MITACS elevate grant will support the improvement of a novel technology using water as a solvent to recycle electronic waste by extracting valuable metals and reducing environmental pollution, respectively. For example, a typical personal computer’s printed circuit boards contain Copper Cu (20%) and Gold Au (250 g/t). Gold is a precious metal which can be extracted and reused in new printed circuit boards. Recycling methods developed in this project will be commercialized by Everything Recycling Inc.

Faculty Supervisor:

Paul Charpentier

Student:

Partner:

Everything Recycling Inc.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Administrative and support, waste management and remediation services; Manufacturing; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

The University of Western Ontario

Program: