A sustainable process for selective recovery of metals from gallium-bearing waste generated from LED industry

With the rapid development of the LED industry, gallium (Ga)-bearing waste generated is regarded as one of the most hazardous as it typically contains heavy metals and combustible organics. Traditional technologies are characterized by long processing routes, complex metal separation processes and significant secondary pollution emission. In this study, we proposed an innovative and green strategy to selectively recovery Ga from Ga-bearing waste by using a quantitative phase-controlling transition process. In the phase-controlling transition process, the gallium nitride (GaN) and indium (In) are converted to alkali-soluble gallium (III) oxide (Ga₂O₃) and alkali-insoluble indium oxides (In₂O₃) by oxidation calcination, while nitrogen is converted into diatomic nitrogen gas instead of ammonia/ammonium (NH₃/NH₄⁺). By selective leaching with NaOH solution, nearly 92.65% of Ga can be recycled with a leaching selectivity of 99.3%, while little emissions of NH₃/NH₄⁺. Ga₂O₃ with a purity of 99.97% was obtained from the leachate which is also economy promising by economic assessment. Therefore, the proposed methodology compared to the conventional acid and alkali leaching methods is potentially greener and more efficient process for extracting valuable metals from nitrogen-bearing solid waste.