APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR STRIPPING SOLDER METALS DURING THE RECYCLING OF WASTE ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT

• US 20150322545A1
• Filed: 07/20/2015
• Published: 11/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Entegris Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Advanced Technology Materials, Inc. (Entegris Incorporated)
• Inventors: KORZENSKI, Michael B., JIANG, Ping, CHEN, Tianniu
• Granted Patent: US 9,649,712 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B09B 3/00 Destroying solid waste or transforming solid waste into something useful or harmless
• CPC Class Codes: B09B 5/00 Operations not covered by a single other subclass or by a single other group in this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 1/018 Unsoldering; Removal of melted solder or other residues
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 3/08 Auxiliary devices therefor cleaning pipes or tubes or systems of pipes or tubes, e.g. before soldering, B08B9/02
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 37/00 Auxiliary devices or processes, not specially adapted to a procedure covered by only one of the preceding main groups eye-shields for welders worn on the operator's body or carried in the hand A61F9/00 , i.e. A61F9/02; applicable to metal-working machines other than soldering, welding, or flame-cutting machines B23Q; laser protective screens B23K26/706; protective shields for other welding methods F16P1/06
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 1/005 Preliminary treatment of scrap C22B1/02 - C22B1/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 11/046 from manufactured products, e.g. from printed circuit boards, from photographic films, paper or baths
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 3/02 Apparatus therefor
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 3/04 by leaching C22B3/18 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 4/00 Electrothermal treatment of ores or metallurgical products for obtaining metals or alloys obtaining iron or steel C21B, C21C
• CPC Class Codes: C22B 7/006 Wet processes
• CPC Class Codes: C25C 1/00 Electrolytic production, recovery or refining of metals by electrolysis of solutions C25C5/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2203/178 Demolishing, e.g. recycling, reverse engineering, destroying for security purposes; Using biodegradable materials
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/22 Secondary treatment of printed circuits H05K3/1283 takes precedence; embedding circuits in grooves by pressure H05K3/107
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 10/20 Recycling
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 70/50 Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 30/82 Recycling of waste of electrical or electronic equipment [WEEE]

Abstract

Apparatuses and processes for recycling printed wire boards, wherein electronic components, precious metals and base metals may be collected for reuse and recycling. The apparatuses generally include a mechanical solder removal module and/or a thermal module, a chemical solder removal module, and a precious metal leaching module, wherein the modules are attached for continuous passage of the e-waste from module to module.

Claims

1-33. -33. (canceled)

34. A process for recovering a precious metal from a printed wire board (PWB) and/or PWB component, the process comprising,

contacting the PWB and/or PWB component with a leaching composition in a leaching module to extract at least a portion of the precious metal from the PWB and/or PWB component into the leaching composition;

isolating the leaching composition from the PWB and/or PWB component;

rinsing the PWB and/or PWB component in a rinsing module; and

drying the PWB and/or PWB component in a drying module.

35. The process of claim 34, further comprising recovering the precious metal from the isolated leaching composition.

36. The process of claim 34, wherein the leaching module, the rinsing module and the drying module are in series.

37. The process of claim 34, wherein the PWB and/or PWB component moves manually or automatically from the precious metal leaching module to the rinsing module and to the drying module.

38. The process of claim 37, wherein the PWB and/or PWB component moves manually or automatically on a conveyer belt, conveying roller or conveying wheel.

39. The process of claim 34, further comprising crushing the PWB and/or PWB component in a crushing module.

40. The process of claim 34, wherein the precious metal is dissolved or solubilized in the leaching composition.

41. The process of claim 40, wherein the isolated leaching composition comprises precious metal ions.

42. The process of claim 35, further wherein the recovery of the precious metal from the isolated leaching composition comprises reducing, electrowinning or electrochemically converting the precious metal ions to precious metal.

43. The process of claim 42, further comprising precipitating the precious metal after reduction, electrowinning or electrochemical conversion.

44. The process of claim 34, wherein the isolation comprises filtering and/or centrifuging and/or decanting the leaching composition from the PWB and/or PWB component.

45. The process of claim 34, wherein the PWB and/or PWB component further comprises base metals and the base metals have dissolved in the leaching composition.

46. The process of claim 45, further comprising removing the base metals from the leaching composition by electroplating or ion exchange.

47. The process of claim 34, wherein the leaching composition comprises a multi-part formulation.

48. The process of claim 47, wherein the multiple parts are mixed at or before a point of use.

49. The process of claim 46, wherein the leaching composition is purified and recycled.

50. The process of claim 34, further comprising processing the PWB and/or PWB component in a chemical solder removal module.

51. The process of claim 34, further comprising removing casing or epoxied components from the PWB in a heating module.

52. The process of claim 34, wherein the PWB component comprises at least one of a transistor, a capacitor, a heat sink, an integrated circuit, a resistor, an integrated switch, and a processor.