Base Metals Extraction from Printed Circuit Boards by Pressure Acid Leaching

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are a valuable source of raw materials for metal recycling considering that base concentration analyses have confirmed PCB powders multimetallic in nature and contain high concentrations Cu, Zn, Ni, Fe. Given minerals not renewable resources, these metals can be recycled through hydrometallurgical processes. In this study, we determined 2 M sulfuric acid, 0.55 MPa oxygen pressure, temperature 90 °C represent the optimal conditions leaching Ni PCBs, obtaining highest observed values recovery greater than 90% Zn 98% Cu Ni. The characterization PCBs by SEM–EDS showed plates mainly consist Zn. seen as potential secondary resource copper, nickel, zinc. best pH extraction were also on basis thermodynamic diagrams.