Current background

The annual increase in global electronic waste has exceeded 50 million tons, and the resource recycling of printed circuit boards (PCBs) has become an important issue in the field of circular economy. This article proposes a simple recycling scheme based on physical sorting, which achieves efficient separation of metals and non metals through modular equipment combination. This solution has a simple process and controllable cost, which significantly reduces the technical threshold while ensuring environmental benefits. It is particularly suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises to quickly implement and promote the large-scale development of the electronic waste resource utilization industry.

Technological process

For the resource recycling of waste PCB boards, this process adopts a modular mechanical processing system with physical sorting as the core to achieve efficient and environmentally friendly recycling: materials enter the crushing unit through a closed conveyor belt, and for ordinary consumer electronics PCB boards (such as mobile phone and home appliance boards), a hammer crusher can be directly used for coarse crushing, while large-sized server/communication boards need to be pre processed by a dual axis shredder to ensure feeding adaptability; After crushing, the material is processed by fine grinding equipment to a suitable particle size, and the dissociation of metal and non-metal (glass fiber, epoxy resin) is simultaneously completed; Subsequently, metal particles are separated from lightweight non metals through air flow specific gravity sorting. For fine metal powders, an electrostatic sorting module can be added to improve purity; The dust removal system adopts a two-stage pulse bag filter series design, effectively solving the problem of high dust after glass fiber substrate grinding and ensuring emission standards.

The highlights of the process selection include: the intelligent material recognition system automatically switches the pre-processing mode through spectral analysis, low value small PCB boards can be directly processed without manual disassembly to reduce costs, while high-value servers/communication boards integrate high-precision sorting and robotic arm disassembly units to accurately extract high-value components; The modular architecture supports dynamic adjustment of process routes based on material composition, comprehensively covering the needs of multiple categories of electronic waste treatment, and achieving efficient recycling and environmentally friendly disposal of metal and non-metal resources.

Core equipment

1. Conveyor belt system
As the starting point of the recycling process, the conveyor belt achieves automated and uniform feeding through variable frequency speed regulation, adapting to the processing rhythm of subsequent equipment. The equipment integrates metal detection and automatic sorting functions, which can remove hazardous components; Modular design is compatible with PCB boards of different specifications. Optimization measures include adding magnetic separation pretreatment to separate ferromagnetic metals, and configuring monitoring devices to prevent overload.
2. Hammer crusher
This equipment is responsible for primary crushing, using wear-resistant hammers to crush the entire plate into smaller particles. The crushing chamber adopts a sealed design, combined with a dust removal device to control dust leakage; The sieve controls the particle size of the discharged material. Optimization measures include introducing low-temperature crushing technology to suppress metal oxidation and configuring feeding devices to ensure uniform distribution of materials.
3. Grinding machine
As a secondary grinding device, it refines particles through structural synergy, promoting the dissociation of metal and resin substrates. Grading wheel controls the particle size distribution of the discharged material; The grinding chamber is made of wear-resistant materials. Optimization measures include adding an online monitoring system to adjust parameters in real-time and configuring anti blocking devices to improve efficiency.
4. Airflow specific gravity sorting machine
The core sorting equipment utilizes density differences to achieve efficient separation of metal particles through controllable airflow and vibration parameters. The tilt angle of the equipment can be adjusted to adapt to different material characteristics. Optimization measures include optimizing the distribution of gas flow field, reducing interference, and configuring multi-stage sorting modules to improve recovery rate.
5. Pulse dust collector
The core equipment for exhaust gas purification uses coated filter bags to collect dust and ensure emissions meet standards. Equipped with an automatic ash cleaning system and activated carbon adsorption layer to treat volatile organic compounds, while recovering waste heat to achieve energy conservation.

Processing videos

Recycling advantages
Environmental safety: No chemical reagents or high-temperature treatment throughout the process, avoiding toxic gas emissions, low energy consumption, and dust/exhaust emissions far below standards.
Resource efficiency: Metals (such as copper and aluminum) are separated from non metals (such as epoxy resin and fiberglass) with high purity. Metals can be directly smelted, while non metal powders can be converted into building materials or plastic raw materials, with a resource utilization rate of nearly 100%.
Intelligent and flexible: Automated operations reduce manual intervention, modular design adapts to different scale requirements, and low safety risks