Selective Gold Recycling from Electronic Waste Using a Highly Stable Porous Aromatic Framework/Polymer and Its
Tianwei Xue1, Guangkuo Xu1, Chengbin Liu1
1Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian, 361005, China.
Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|February 17, 2025
Summary
This study introduces a novel porous aromatic framework (PAF)/polymer composite for efficient gold recovery from electronic waste. The material demonstrates high adsorption capacity and selective extraction, enabling sustainable resource management and CO2 conversion.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Environmental Chemistry
- Electrochemistry
Background:
- Electronic waste (e-waste) poses significant environmental challenges due to the valuable metals it contains.
- Developing sustainable methods for recovering precious metals like gold from e-waste is crucial for resource conservation and waste reduction.
- Existing gold recovery techniques often lack efficiency, selectivity, or environmental friendliness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and synthesize a novel porous aromatic framework (PAF)/polymer composite for selective gold recovery from electronic waste.
- To evaluate the adsorption performance, including capacity and kinetics, of the developed composite for gold.
- To demonstrate the practical application of the composite in recovering gold from real e-waste leachate and its subsequent use in electrocatalytic CO2 reduction.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of a porous aromatic framework (PAF-147) and its subsequent composite formation with polydopamine (PDA).
- Characterization of the PAF-147/PDA composite's structure and properties.
- Gold adsorption experiments under various pH conditions and contact times.
- Application of the gold-loaded composite in electrocatalytic CO2 reduction.
Main Results:
- The synthesized PAF-147/PDA composite exhibited a high maximum gold adsorption capacity of 1700 mg/g.
- Over 95% of gold was rapidly extracted within 2 minutes across a wide pH range (0-10).
- The composite successfully recovered 99% of gold from discarded central processing unit leachate.
- The recovered gold, integrated into the composite, achieved >95% Faradaic efficiency for CO production in CO2 electroreduction.
Conclusions:
- The PAF-147/PDA composite is a highly efficient and selective adsorbent for gold recovery from electronic waste.
- This material offers a sustainable solution for both resource recovery and waste valorization.
- The study presents a novel approach combining selective gold recycling with efficient electrocatalytic CO2 conversion, opening new avenues for circular economy strategies.
