{"id":1297052,"date":"2025-06-30T09:02:58","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T03:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/?p=1297052"},"modified":"2025-06-30T09:03:33","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T03:33:33","slug":"scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone\/","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Find A Safe Method To Extract Gold From Your Smartphone"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>As our world becomes increasingly digital, the flip side of tech advancement is mounting e-waste. In 2022 alone, the planet generated <strong>62 million tonnes<\/strong> of electronic waste\u2014a staggering 82% rise since 2010. Projections suggest this number will jump another 32% by 2030, hitting <strong>82 million tonnes<\/strong>. Old phones, laptops, servers, and digital accessories are being discarded faster than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"594\" src=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM-1024x594.png\" alt=\"Scientists Find A Safe Method To Extract Gold From Your Smartphone\" class=\"wp-image-1297064\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM-1024x594.png 1024w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM-300x174.png 300w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM-768x445.png 768w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM.png 1394w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This surge not only harms the environment but also results in the loss of <a href=\"https:\/\/economictimes.indiatimes.com\/magazines\/panache\/there-is-gold-in-your-old-phone-new-easy-3-step-recovery-method-discovered-by-scientists\/articleshow\/122138930.cms?from=mdr#:~:text=Scientists%20have%20developed%20a%20safe,purity%20gold%20without%20toxic%20chemicals.\">valuable<\/a> materials like <strong>gold, silver, and rare earth elements<\/strong>\u2014only about 1% of which are recovered via recycling today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Breakthrough in Gold Recovery<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In a major scientific advancement, researchers have unveiled a <strong>new method to safely extract gold<\/strong> from electronic waste. Published in <em>Nature Sustainability<\/em>, the method uses <strong>environmentally safe chemicals and reusable polymers<\/strong>, offering a viable and scalable alternative to traditional, toxic recovery processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How the 3-Step Process Works<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Step 1: Dissolving Gold<\/strong><br>Gold is dissolved using <strong>trichloroisocyanuric acid<\/strong>, a common water treatment chemical, aided by a halide catalyst that facilitates oxidation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Step 2: Binding Gold<\/strong><br>A <strong>polysulfide polymer<\/strong> is introduced to the solution. It binds exclusively to the dissolved gold, filtering it out from other metals and impurities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Step 3: Recovering Gold<\/strong><br>The gold-bound polymer is either <strong>heated (pyrolyzed)<\/strong> or <strong>chemically broken down (depolymerized)<\/strong>, resulting in high-purity gold. The polymer can be reused, adding to the method\u2019s sustainability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Eco-Friendly and Scalable<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This method avoids the use of <strong>cyanide and mercury<\/strong>, often used in gold mining and e-waste recycling. It\u2019s safer, cleaner, and tested on <strong>natural ores as well as various e-waste sources<\/strong>, proving its broader applicability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As e-waste volumes rise\u2014equal to <strong>1.55 million 40-tonne trucks circling the Earth<\/strong>\u2014this innovation presents a circular, environmentally responsible alternative to both mining and landfilling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What This Means for the Future<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Industries and governments worldwide are now exploring this solution for <strong>large-scale deployment<\/strong>. If adopted widely, it could transform e-waste from a global crisis into an opportunity\u2014helping recover <strong>precious metals<\/strong>, reduce pollution, and drive <strong>sustainable economic practices<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is not just about recycling gold\u2014<strong>it\u2019s about reimagining waste as a resource<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EqF1izyjX8k\">Image Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As our world becomes increasingly digital, the flip side of tech advancement is mounting e-waste. In 2022 alone, the planet generated 62 million tonnes of electronic waste\u2014a staggering 82% rise since 2010. Projections suggest this number will jump another 32% by 2030, hitting 82 million tonnes. Old phones, laptops, servers, and digital accessories are being [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":1297064,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[669,156],"class_list":["post-1297052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology","tag-gold","tag-smartphones"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Scientists Find A Safe Method To Extract Gold From Your Smartphone - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Scientists Find A Safe Method To Extract Gold From Your Smartphone - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As our world becomes increasingly digital, the flip side of tech advancement is mounting e-waste. In 2022 alone, the planet generated 62 million tonnes of electronic waste\u2014a staggering 82% rise since 2010. Projections suggest this number will jump another 32% by 2030, hitting 82 million tonnes. Old phones, laptops, servers, and digital accessories are being [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-30T03:32:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-30T03:33:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Screenshot-2025-06-30-at-9.02.03\u202fAM-1024x594.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"594\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mohul Ghosh\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mohul Ghosh\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/scientists-find-a-safe-method-to-extract-gold-from-your-smartphone\/\",\"name\":\"Scientists Find A Safe Method To Extract Gold From Your Smartphone - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; 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