Advance in circuit board recycling

Chinese researchers have developed a method of recycling circuit boards from computer, phones and other electronic waste without releasing toxic gases.

Currently most of the boards which do not go straight to landfill are incinerated or dumped in smelters in an effort to recover the valuable metals.

This, however, has the undesirable effect of releasing poisonous gases and dioxins.

According to New Scientist researchers in Shanghai are now pioneering a technology which crushes the boards before separating metallic and non-metallic components using a high voltage electrical field.

The non-metallic waste can be recycled as a building material, they claim.

Sam Bond