Recycling plays a vital role in the drive towards a more sustainable society by reducing the amount of waste going to landfill thereby conserving natural resources. An EU-funded initiative has therefore developed innovative processes using powerful solvents to recycle metals from unwanted electrical and electronic material.
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) is the fastest growing form of waste in Europe. However, such discarded material contains significant amounts of raw materials described as critical metals that can be profitably recycled. Critical metals’ availability is essential for high-technology, green and defence applications, but they are vulnerable to fluctuations in supply.
Further information: Recovery of critical metals from waste promotes green technologies