A Cornell University-led research team has created a new process to extract 99.9% of the gold from electronic waste to help turn carbon dioxide into useful organic materials.
Discarded electronics are a growing problem, as the 2024 global E-Waste Monitor report explained. Around 62 million metric tonnes (68 million tons) of it were generated in 2022, with an expected rise of 2.6 million tonnes (2.8 million tons) annually. Less than a quarter of that was noted as being properly collected and recycled, leaving around $62 billion in resources ending up in landfills.
According to The Debrief, postdoctoral researcher Amin Zadehnazari developed the breakthrough recycling process while working in the lab of Alireza Abbaspourrad, a professor of food chemistry and ingredient technology.
It's a non-toxic method of extracting gold from e-waste through the use of covalent organic materials (COFs). These can selectively capture 99.9% of the gold from things like circuit boards and other discarded electronics.
"We can then use the gold-loaded COFs to convert CO2 into useful chemicals," as Zadehnazari shared in a press release.
"By transforming CO2 into value-added materials, we not only reduce waste disposal demands, we also provide both environmental and practical benefits. It's kind of a win-win for the environment."
There's potentially 10 times more gold in a ton of e-waste than mining that same amount of ore, as The Debrief shared. Failing to recover that material is a missed opportunity for a more eco-friendly circular economy, and could reduce reliance on mining operations.
"Knowing how much gold and other precious metals go into these types of electronic devices, being able to recover them in a way where you can selectively capture the metal you want — in this case, gold — is very important," said Abbaspourrad.
Recycling processes have evolved in recent years, as the United Nations explained, but some developing nations are still using dangerous toxic chemicals to dissolve metals and other materials found in electronic waste. This can lead to contamination of soil and water sources, harming nearby communities.
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Luckily, there have been several advances in the recycling sector, with many relying on automated facilities to keep people safe from toxic materials. Finding ways to repair older devices instead of disposing of them can also stem the tide of e-waste.
Sustainable recycling methods such as Zadehnazari's are an important step towards curbing planet-warming emissions and reducing overall waste, and funding by the National Science Foundation has been key in supporting that research.
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