Turning Tech Trash Into Precious Metals: Extracting Gold, Silver and Copper From Electronic Waste

Waste computers and cell phones, solar panels, and other electronic waste are becoming an important source of noble metals alongside mining. Researchers at the University of Helsinki have developed sustainable dissolution methods for noble metals.

The extraction methods currently in use consume a lot of energy and are detrimental to the environment. The method of roasting is particularly dangerous for its practitioners and the environment, into which it releases hazardous chemicals, alike. In developing countries, noble metals are to this day extracted under crude conditions in landfills.