Bioleaching for metal recovery from telecoms switchboard

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are a necessity for electronic equipment to function especially in the telecommunications industry. From a PCB for broadcasting networks to PCBs for office communications they are what makes electronic communications equipment operate. The sophistication possible with modern electronic and microelectronic devices depends ultimately on the materials they are made from. Metals have assumed a vital role in electronics at every stage in their evolution. PCBs are rich in base and precious metals, and should be considered as a secondary resource. Bioleaching is a proven green and sustainable method for metal recovery as demonstrated in the mining industry, but applications to metal recovery from electronic equipment are still limited. In this study, bioleaching is applied for the first time to telecommunications products that have reached the end of their useful life. Because several biological and physicochemical parameters can influence bioleaching, the first step in this study has been to analyse the metal content of populated PCBs. In the second part, the effect of different parameters on bioleaching is investigated, with the aim of improving metal recovery. Altogether, the study aims to demonstrate the effectiveness of bioleaching for metal recovery from WEEE.