this post was submitted on 13 Oct 2023
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Vapes, chargers, and other “invisible” e-waste are a 9-million-ton problem. (www.theverge.com)
submitted 1 year ago by L4s to c/technology
39 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Vapes, chargers, and other “invisible” e-waste are a 9-million-ton problem.::Chargers, vapes, and other small electronics make up millions of tons of “invisible” e-waste each year. Recycling them could recover billions of dollars worth of precious materials.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Step 1. Get A LOT of sulphuric acid
Step 2. Get some large vats, and a metal recovery unit
Step 3. Add waste + sulphuric acid
Step 4. Collect leachate and precipitate metal
Step 5. Profit

This is basically the process used for a lot of historical mines or mines with low grade ore, except they didn't use vats back then, but a constructed pad, with leachate collection.

[–] grabyourmotherskeys 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Done at scale is this process producing a lot of toxic gases and waste chemicals?

(I think you can tell I have no idea what I'm talking about here, I'm genuinely curious)

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

Yeah, it's not environmentally friendly, that's for sure.

Most of the issue with mining though, come from exposing buried rock to the atmosphere, or from the tailings (crushed, processed rock)