A protocol termed electrothermal chlorination is developed for the energy-efficient recovery of critical metals from electronic waste. The incorporation of direct electric heating into a chlorination process enables precise temperature control and rapid heating and cooling rates, facilitating metal separation based on subtle differences in thermodynamics as well as kinetic selectivity.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles
$119.00 per year
only $9.92 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Nassar, N. T. & Fortier, S. M. Methodology and Technical Input for the 2021 Review and Revision of the U.S. Critical Minerals List Open-File Report 2021–1045 (US Geological Survey, 2021). The US critical minerals list issued by the US Geological Survey.
Awasthi, A. K., Li, J., Koh, L. & Ogunseitan, O. A. Circular economy and electronic waste. Nat. Electron. 2, 86–89 (2019). This comment article discusses the global e-waste problem and the potential for a circular economy for e-waste.
Abdelbasir, S. M., Hassan, S. S. M., Kamel, A. H. & El-Nasr, R. S. Status of electronic waste recycling techniques: a review. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 25, 16533–16547 (2018). This review article summarizes the methods deployed for metal recycling from e-waste and their pros and cons.
Xing, Z., Cheng, G., Yang, H., Xue, X. & Jiang, P. Mechanism and application of the ore with chlorination treatment: a review. Miner. Eng. 154, 106404 (2020). This paper reviews the fundamentals of the chlorination process and its applications in mining.
Terakado, O., Saeki, T., Irizato, R. & Hirasawa, M. Pyrometallurgical recovery of indium from dental metal recycling sludge by chlorination treatment with ammonium chloride. Mater. Trans. 51, 1136–1140 (2010). This paper reports the chlorination process for metal recovery using an indirect heating furnace.
Deng, B. et al. Urban mining by flash Joule heating. Nat. Commun. 12, 5794 (2021). This paper reports the recovery of precious metals from e-waste by flash Joule heating.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
This is a summary of: Deng, B. et al. Flash separation of metals by electrothermal chlorination. Nat. Chem. Eng. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-024-00125-2 (2024).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Electrified chlorination for critical metals recovery from electronic waste. Nat Chem Eng 1, 613–614 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-024-00129-y
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-024-00129-y
