Research project Research project »Platform technology for the utilisation of chlorine-containing waste and recovery of critical metals – Chlorine Platform«

Recovery of high-tech metals using PVC waste

Pressemitteilung / January 17, 2022

The Fraunhofer Institute UMSICHT, based in Sulzbach-Rosenberg, is conducting research in collaboration with the technical university of applied sciences Amberg-Weiden, the University of Regensburg and SKH GmbH on a process for recycling chlorine-containing waste. This waste is to be used to recover critical metals from electronic scrap and other material flows.

Chlorination reactor at Fraunhofer UMSICHT for chlorinating critical metals.

Process diagram of the »chlorine platform« for recovering critical metals and recycling raw materials from chlorine-containing waste

The ForCYCLE II project consortium is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection.

project objectives

The »chlorine platform« project aims to develop a new method for recycling chlorine-containing plastic waste while simultaneously recovering metals that are critical to supply. For many of the high-tech metals under consideration, such as indium or rare earth metals, this will make recycling from end-of-life waste possible for the first time. With this technology, it is potentially possible to recover tens of thousands of tons of HCl and thus several thousand tons of high-tech metals from waste.

Potential users of the technology include waste disposal and recycling companies, but above all the processing and manufacturing industries. Recovered high-tech metals from waste could contribute to securing the supply of raw materials for production processes, greater resilience in supply chains and greater sustainability.

initial situation

Chlorinated plastic waste – primarily waste containing polyvinyl chloride (PVC), for example from end-of-life vehicles or the construction sector – is mainly recycled thermally (62% in 2017). The hydrogen chloride (HCl) produced during combustion must be removed from the flue gas at great expense or neutralised and landfilled. This is necessary to prevent corrosion of plant components and the formation of highly toxic dioxins and furans.

As far as the recycling of high-tech metals is concerned, established recycling processes already exist for particularly valuable metals such as platinum group metals (PGMs), e.g. in refineries or integrated copper smelters. There are still no optimal recycling routes for the majority of critical metals. These include, for example, rare earth metals or indium, which are needed for electronic devices and components such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), fibre optic cables or LCD panels. These metals usually occur in residual or secondary fractions of larger waste streams (e.g. from the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment). Material recycling is difficult to impossible for these types of waste, and thermal recycling effectively results in the loss of the metals they contain.

solution approach

Using a thermochemical dechlorination process based on iCycle technology developed at the Fraunhofer Institute UMSICHT, a gas containing HCl is first produced from chlorinated plastic waste. The HCl is reacted with the metal-containing waste (chlorination), whereupon the metals contained therein are converted into their metal chlorides. Due to the lower boiling points of the metal chlorides, these evaporate and are specifically condensed. This produces a metal-rich, liquid concentrate. Further process steps extract the metals, separate them and convert them into marketable target products, which can then be used again in the high-tech industry.

In addition to the gas phase, a carbon-rich solid residue is produced as a by-product. This (chlorine-free) carbonised material can be used in production processes, e.g. in metallurgy or glass recycling, as a substitute for fossil fuels.

project consortium ForCYCLE II

The project »Platform technology for the utilisation of chlorine-containing waste and recovery of critical metals – Chlorine Platform« is one of eleven projects in the ForCYCLE II project network led by OTH Amberg-Weiden. The consortium is developing innovative technological solutions to increase resource efficiency. The ForCYCLE II project consortium is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection.

Last modified: January 17, 2022

Recycling high-tech metals using chlorinated waste – research project launched in collaboration with OTH Amberg-Weiden

Press release update I 22 November 2022

Research into the recovery of high-tech metals from waste is continuing as part of the »ForCYCLE Technikum« project network.

Fraunhofer UMSICHT in Sulzbach-Rosenberg is cooperating with OTH Amberg-Weiden and the companies Lober GmbH & Co. KG and GRAMET GmbH & Co. KG. The project aims to recover high-tech metals using pollutants generated during plastic disposal. The aim is to (further) develop resource-saving and climate-friendly technologies for the Bavarian economy and to apply them in companies. In addition to the efficient use of resources, recycling plays an important role in this.

The project goal is to further develop a process that has already been successfully tested on a laboratory scale at Fraunhofer UMSICHT and is now being transferred to a larger pilot scale. »With this technology, it is possible to produce tens of thousands of tons of hydrogen chloride in Bavaria alone and thus recover several thousand tons of high-tech metals from waste,« says Michael Peer, project manager at Fraunhofer UMSICHT. »Such a plant could be operated by waste disposal and recycling companies.« The project therefore pays particular attention to the validation of the ecological and economic process chain. This means that the recycled high-tech metals from the waste must also be marketable and competitive.

»What makes this project unique is that we are combining the recycling of chlorine-containing waste with the recovery of high-tech metals,’ explains Prof. Dr.-Ing. Burkhard Berninger, project manager at OTH Amberg-Weiden: »This means that we use hydrogen chloride, which is produced during the thermochemical recycling of waste containing polyvinyl chloride (PVC), e.g. from end-of-life vehicles or the construction sector, and is therefore intended to reduce the chlorine problem in thermal recycling. This is then used to recover high-tech metals such as indium, cobalt or rare earth metals from LCD panels and LEDs. Until now, these metals have often been lost because, unlike platinum group metals, for example, there are still no optimal recycling processes.«

»This research project and the entire project network are excellent examples of technology transfer in action. Universities, institutes and companies are working together to develop sustainable solutions to relevant future problems that will benefit companies and all of us,« emphasises Prof. Dr. Clemens Bulitta, President of OTH Amberg-Weiden.

Specific project schedule

During the course of the project, a demonstration plant will be installed at Fraunhofer UMSICHT in Sulzbach-Rosenberg and trial campaigns will be carried out. For this purpose, Lober GmbH und Co. KG will provide PVC-containing plastic waste, which will be used to treat LCD panels and LEDs. This will produce solid and liquid metal concentrates, which will then be further processed at OTH Amberg-Weiden. Here, the various high-tech metals will be separated from the metal concentrates and made available for reuse in the economic cycle. GRAMET GmbH und Co. KG will then examine the high-tech metals for purity and potential market placement. The further use of other products generated during the process is also being investigated.

At the end of the project, it should be possible to set up such plants at waste disposal companies as well. High-tech metals can then be recovered from the metal concentrates produced, thus contributing to the security of supply for the Bavarian economy.

project consortium ForCYCLE Technikum

The project »Technology for removing pollutants from chlorinated waste and recovering high-tech metals – CHM technology« is one of five projects in the »ForCYCLE Technikum« project network led by OTH Amberg-Weiden. The project is funded with over €780,000 by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Environment and Consumer Protection and coordinated by the Bavarian Resource Efficiency Centre (REZ) at the State Office for the Environment.

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