The separation of waste printed circuit board by dissolving bromine epoxy resin using organic solvent

Waste Manag. 2013 Feb;33(2):484-8. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2012.10.003. Epub 2012 Nov 21.

Abstract

Separation of waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) has been a bottleneck in WPCBs resource processing. In this study, the separation of WPCBs was performed using dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as a solvent. Various parameters, which included solid to liquid ratio, temperature, WPCB sizes, and time, were studied to understand the separation of WPCBs by dissolving bromine epoxy resin using DMSO. Experimental results showed that the concentration of dissolving the bromine epoxy resin increased with increasing various parameters. The optimum condition of complete separation of WPCBs was solid to liquid ratio of 1:7 and WPCB sizes of 16 mm(2) at 145°C for 60 min. The used DMSO was vapored under the decompression, which obtained the regenerated DMSO and dissolved bromine epoxy resin. This clean and non-polluting technology offers a new way to separate valuable materials from WPCBs and prevent the environmental pollution of waste printed circuit boards effectively.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bromine / chemistry*
  • Cold Temperature
  • Dimethyl Sulfoxide / chemistry
  • Electronic Waste*
  • Epoxy Resins / chemistry*
  • Recycling / methods*
  • Refuse Disposal / methods*
  • Solvents / chemistry*

Substances

  • Epoxy Resins
  • Solvents
  • Bromine
  • Dimethyl Sulfoxide