Recycling of Electronic Wastes by Disintegrator Mills and Study of the Separation Technique of Different Materials

Abstract

The aim of this work was to study and develop the prospective method and technique for mechanical recycling of printed circuit boards (PCBs). This study describes mechanical reprocessing of PCBs in high-energy disintegrator mills in the direct and selective milling systems. The ferrous metal particles and plastic particles with non-ferrous metal particles were roughly separated by a magnetic separation technique. Several tests were made for air classification of plastic and non-ferrous metal particles. The particle size and distribution were examined by the sieve analysis and laser granulometry analysis (max 300 μm).The chemical composition of the PCB powders was studied by means of the energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDS) with the Link Analytical AN10000 system. The X-ray mapping technique was used to evaluate element distribution inside the powder particles.