Review: Current Status of Recycling of Waste Printed Circuit Boards in India

Rashmi Kumar, Dahyalal. J. Shah

Chemical Engineering, D. J. Sanghvi College of Engineering, Mumbai, India.
Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management & Engineering, NMIMS University, Mumbai, India.

DOI: 10.4236/jep.2014.51002                

Abstract

Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) are an integral part of any electronic equipment. The growth of e-waste as end-of-life electronic equipments at an exponential rate is producing large quantities of discarded PCBs. In India, current recycling and processing of PCBs is managed almost entirely by the informal sector or the unskilled labor (95%). The crude recycling activities cause irreversible health and environmental hazards and the loss of valuable materials due to the poor recovery of base and precious metals. With the disclosures of the recycling being done by unskilled labor, alternative recycling strategies are being sought with the aim of higher recovery of materials in an environment friendly manner. There is an urgent need to establish effective and efficient methods for recycling the metals presented in the waste PCBs. In this study, the existing methods practiced for recycling of waste PCBs in India and the management strategies for handling them are assessed.

Keywords

Printed Circuit Boards; India; E-Waste; Informal Recycling

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	I. O. Ogunniyi, M. K. G. Vermaak and D. R. Groot, “Chemical Composition and Liberation Characterization of Printed Circuit Board Communition Fines for Beneficiation Investigations,” Waste Management, Vol. 29, No. 7, 2009, pp. 2140-2146. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2009.03.004
[2]	S. Chatterjee and K. Kumar, “Review Effective Electronic Waste Management and Recycling Process Involving Formal and Non-Formal Sectors,” International Journal of Physical Sciences, Vol. 4, No. 13, 2009, pp. 893-905
[3]	J. Li, P. Shrivastava, Z. Gao and H. C. Zhang, “Printed Circuit Board Recycling: A State-of-The Art Survey,” IEEE Transactions on Electronics Packaging Manufacturing, Vol. 27, No. 1, 2004, pp. 33-42.
[4]	Y. J. Park and D. J. Fray, “Separation of Zinc and Nickel Ions in a Strong Acid through Liquid-Liquid Extraction,” Journal of Hazardous Materials, Vol. 163, No. 1, 2009, pp. 259-265. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.06.085
[5]	Y. J. Park and D. J. Fray, “Recovery of High Purity Precious Metals from Printed Circuit Boards,” Journal of Hazardous Materials, Vol. 164, No. 2-3, 2008, pp. 1152-1158.
[6]	B. Kim, J. Lee, S. Seo, Y. Park and H. Sohn, “A Process for Extracting Precious Metals from Spent Printed Circuit Boards and Automobile Catalysts,” JOM, Vol. 56, No. 12, 2004, pp. 55-58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11837-004-0237-9
[7]	A. Borthakur and K. Sinha, “Generation of Electronic Waste in India: Current Scenario, Dilemmas and Stakeholders,” African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 7, No. 9, 2013, pp. 899-910.
[8]	ENVIS Newsletter, October 2008, Envis Centre, Environment Department, Government of Maharashtra, Mumbai.
[9]	Y. Jing, “The Legislation Framework of E-Waste Management in China,” 7th UK CARE Annual General Meeting, UK Chinese Association of Resources and Environment, Greenwich, 15 September 2007.
[10]	European Parliament and Council of the European Union, “Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS),” Official Journal of the European Communities, 2003, pp. 19-23.
[11]	European Parliament and Council of the European Union, “Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE),” Official Journal of the European Communities, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2003, pp. 24-38.
[12]	H. Y. Kang and J. M. Schoenung, “Electronic Waste Recycling: A Review of US Infrastructure and Technology Options,” Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Vol. 45, No. 4, 2005, pp. 368-400. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2005.06.001
[13]	Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, “Report on Assessment of Electronic Wastes in Mumbai-Pune Area,” 2007. http://mpcb.mah.nic.in
[14]	D. Sinha-Khetriwal, P. Kraeuchi and M. Schwaninger, “A comparison of electronic waste recycling in Switzerland and in India,” Environmental Impact Assessment Review, Vol. 25, No. 5, 2005, pp. 492-504. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2005.04.006
[15]	D. Rochat, W. Rodrigues and A. Gantenbein, “India: Including the Existing Informal Sector in a Clean e-Waste Channel,” Proceedings of the 19th Waste Management Conference of the IWMSA (WasteCon 2008), 6-10 October 2008, Durban, pp. 477-483.
[16]	C. Hagelüken, “Recycling of Electronic Scrap at Umicore’s Integrated Metals Smelter and Refinery,” Proceedings of EMC 2005, Vol. 59, No. 3, pp. 152-161.
[17]	O. Osibanjo and I.C. Nnorom, “The Challenge of Electronic (e-Waste) Management in Developing Countries,” Waste Management & Research, Vol. 25, No. 6, 2007, pp. 489-501. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0734242X07082028
[18]	“An Assessment of E-Waste Take-Back in India,” 2008. www.designouttoxics.org