What are the Best E-Waste Recycling Methods?

How do You Recycle E-Waste?

As a business looking to remove redundant IT equipment, e-waste recycling is likely much more straightforward than you think. All you need to do is contact a local e-waste recycler, let them know what you have, and they handle the rest. In terms of how the majority of people recycle e-waste, this is where the story ends for them. For the e-waste recycler, however, there are numerous steps between receiving the equipment and the equipment officially being recycled.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

This cannot be stressed enough and is the reason Techbuyer has multiple recycling partners. There can be any number of different materials found in redundant IT equipment, all of varying rarity, value and difficulty to extract. In many cases, the only option to recyclers is to sacrifice one material in order to extract another.

Examples of E-Waste Recycling Methods - Disassembly

E-waste recycling is currently an area of innovation. Across the world, countless organisations are looking for more efficient and sustainable ways to recover and reuse the precious materials found in redundant IT. E-waste recycling involves a number of different methods due to the multitude of materials found in each piece of equipment.

Manual Separation

Serving more as an initial stage of the e-waste recycling process, this is how to make sure all the separate materials can be more efficiently processed. Manual separation is exactly as described; it involves an taking e-waste apart by hand or via machine. This not only creates jobs but also offers a high rate of consistency with well-trained team members, as well as quick turnaround, especially with items such as servers.

Shredding

A popular method for security purposes. Hard drives are commonly shredded as it is a sure-fire way of ensuring that any data on the device is unretrievable. Other equipment can also be shredded as it gets reduced into incredibly small pieces, which can help with material separation and extraction in certain cases.

AI Recycling Technology

An exciting application of AI comes in the form of precision e-waste recycling. Apple, for example, has already created a robot named Daisy that is capable of identifying and dismantling iPhones. They are not the only ones using this technology. The idea of an AI powered robot being able to identify countless different types of e-waste and dismantle them accordingly is an exciting one and could be a huge step forward in fighting the flow of e-waste.

Examples of E-Waste Recycling Methods – Refining

Bioleaching

By using living organisms, it is possible to separate materials from each other that is not otherwise possible through mechanical or manual separation. Leaching opens the possibility of material recovery at an enormous scale and is already being used by organisations such as Bioscope, who you can read more about here.

Smelting

There are a lot of different materials in e-waste. These materials often have different melting points. This can then be used to separate the numerous metals by holding at certain temperatures. It is especially effective at extracting items such as gold and copper.

Pyrolysis

A similar technique to smelting, but with a key difference. Pyrolysis is heating performed within a vacuum and aims to break down materials into gases, oils and char that can be used as an energy source. It also degrades the toxic components of e-waste.

The Importance of Refurbishing Redundant IT

Recycling signifies the end of a product’s lifecycle, so before even considering it you must ask yourself an important question – can this equipment continue to be utilised in its current form? If yes, then maybe rather than recycling, it is time to look at repair and refurbishment.

Choosing to keep devices in use reduces the requirement for new devices, which in turn reduces the need for the continued extraction of finite materials.

Making the Sustainable Decision with Techbuyer 

Whatever the situation you find yourself in, Techbuyer has the solution. Sell your used IT to Techbuyer and you ensure both the best price possible and a sustainable solution.

Looking for ITAD? Take your pick from the multiple options we have available.

Simply want to sell hardware? Techbuyer has 20 years of experience in refurbished hardware.  

Find yourself with redundant IT? The Techbuyer Resource Recovery Team are specialists in e-waste recycling and ensure that your redundant technology avoids landfill

Ready to learn more about selling your hardware to Techbuyer? Find out more here.