Image: freefoto.comResearchers in China are developing a way to recycle circuit boards used in consumer electronics without releasing all the toxins that usually come standard in that process.

Very few printed circuit boards, or PCBs, are actually recycled (by way of a copper smelter) and most end up in landfills.

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are made from insulating layers of fibreglass and resin with electronic components and interconnecting circuitry on top…

Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China, believe their recycling solution could reduce these problems. It involves crushing boards and using a high-voltage electric field to separate metallic and non-metallic materials. The metals can then be reclaimed by distilling in a vacuum while the non-metal components can be compacted into plates for use as building materials.

This process will reduce the toxic fumes emitted, will recover more metals than just copper, and will use less energy than the traditional way. With the amount of new PCBs manufactured each year (mainly in China and Taiwan), this potential recycling "solution" will reduce the amount of heavy metals released into the environment and encourage the reuse of these materials. The bigger challenge of course is in keeping the PCBs out of landfills by encouraging consumers and electronics manufacturers to participate in takeback programs.

Note: don't confuse the Printed Circuit Board PCBs with the other PCBs, Polychlorinated biphenyls, a persistent toxin manufactured for industrial and commercial uses including electrical equipment and plastics prior to 1977.

Via New Scientist