Direct recovery of copper from printed c

In this paper, a novel process to produce copper from ground and concentrated printed circuit board (PCB) powder is presented. The objective was to recover copper from a powder sample consisting of approximately 48% copper utilizing a simultaneous electroleaching and electrodeposition method. The methodology involved anodically dissolving the powder in an acidic copper sulfate solution while concurrently reducing copper ions on the cathode to yield pure electrolytic copper and a residue rich in other metals. Results showed that agitation and increased temperature significantly enhanced copper recovery, with agitation being the most critical factor. At 25 °C with an agitation speed of 415 rpm, an apparent copper recovery of 96% was achieved after 15 hours of electrolysis, while without agitation at 40 °C, the recovery dropped to 90%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analyses confirmed the lack of detectable impurities in the recovered copper, indicating the potential of this method as an effective alternative for copper recovery from PCBs, while also allowing for the recovery of tin and lead, thereby reducing environmental impact associated with hazardous materials.