PCB Tech - Steps for PCB recycling

Steps for PCB recycling

Any item will be damaged if it is continuously used, especially electronic products. However, the damaged items are not completely waste, but can be recycled, and the same is true for printed circuit boards. Moreover, with the advancement of science and technology, the number of electronic products has increased sharply, shortening their use cycles, and many products are discarded without being damaged, leading to serious waste.

Products in the electronics industry are updated very quickly, and the number of discarded PCBs generated therewith is also very staggering. Every year, there are more than 50,000 tons of discarded PCBs in the UK, and as many as 100,000 tons in Taiwan. Recycling is the principle of resource conservation and green production. Moreover, there are some substances in electronic products that are harmful to the environment, and recycling is inevitable.

The metals contained in PCB boards include common metals: aluminum, copper, iron, nickel, lead, tin and zinc, etc.; precious metals: gold, palladium, platinum, silver, etc.; rare metals such as rhodium and selenium. PCB also contains a large number of high-molecular polymers directly or indirectly derived from petroleum products, which have high calorific value. They can be used to generate energy and produce related chemical products, many of which are toxic and harmful. If discarded, it will cause great pollution.

The PCB template is composed of a variety of elements, even if it cannot be used normally, the elements can still be recycled. So, how to recycle, let's introduce its steps:

1. Paint stripping
The surface of the PCB is coated with protective metal, and the first process of recycling is to remove the paint. Paint removers include organic paint removers and alkaline paint removers. Organic paint removers are highly toxic and harmful to the human body and the environment. They can be dissolved by heating with sodium hydroxide and corrosion inhibitors.

2. broken
After the PCB is dismantled, it will be broken. There are methods such as impact crushing, squeezing crushing and shearing crushing. The more commonly used is the ultra-low temperature freezing and crushing technology, which can cool tough materials, make them brittle and crush them, so that metals and non-metals are completely dissociated.

3. sorting
The pulverized material needs to be sorted according to the density, particle size, magnetic permeability, electrical conductivity and other characteristics of its various components. There are usually dry and wet sorting. Dry separation includes dry sieving, magnetic separation, electrostatic, density and eddy current separation. Wet separation includes hydrocyclone classification, flotation, hydraulic shaker, etc. The sorted substances can be reused.

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