X-RAY FLUORESCENCE ANALYSIS OF WASTE ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT

Lilia Hlavatska; Vitalii Ishchenko; Georges Kamtoh Tebug

doi:10.23856/4531

Lilia Hlavatska Vinnytsia National Technical University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2365-1354
Vitalii Ishchenko Vinnytsia National Technical University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8464-1096
Georges Kamtoh Tebug Polonia University in Czestochowa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7897-5831

Keywords: elemental composition, electronic device, waste electrical and electronic equipment, metal, x-ray fluorescence analysis

Abstract

The aim of this paper is x-ray fluorescence analysis of waste electrical and electronic equipment. The paper evaluates the composition of waste electrical and electronic equipment most often used by today’s society. For the five electronic devices (mobile phone, computer mouse, keyboard, web-camera, and computer monitor), the components have been identified and elemental composition has been measured using x-ray fluorescence analysis. As expected, most of the devices weight accounts for plastic (since the casing is mostly made from plastic). Cables also have a significant weight. In the devices analysed, 28 chemical elements were found during the study: the greatest diversity were found in monitor. The largest weight corresponds to “heavy” elements forming metal parts of the devices. Among the valuable components, copper and zinc are the most common. It is worth noting the high content of titanium in all the devices.

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