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About half of the e-waste generated in The Netherlands is properly documented and collected (184kT in 2018). The amount of PCBs in this waste is projected to be about 7kT in 2018 with a growth rate of 3-4%. Studies indicate that a third of the weight of a PCB is made or recoverable and critical metals which we need as resources for the various societal challenges facing us in the future.
Recycling a waste PCB today means first shredding it and then processing it for material recovery mostly via non-selective pyrometallurgical methods. Sorting the PCBs in quality grades (wastebins) before shredding would however lead to more flexibility in selecting when and which recovery metallurgy is to be used. The yield and diversity of the recovered metals increases as a result, especially when high-grade recycling techniques are used.
Unfortunately, the sorting of waste PCBs is not easily automated as an experienced operator eye is needed to classify the very inhomogeneous waste-PCB stream in wastebins. In this project, a knowledge institution partners with an e-waste processor, a high-grade recycling technology startup and a developer of waste sorting systems to investigate the efficiency of methods for sensory sorting of waste PCBs. The knowledge gained in this project will lead towards a waste PCB sorting demonstrator as a follow-up project.