Hey, Recycling can make you wealthier too! So hang on before you chuck your useless, scalawag cell phone that just didn’t obey any of your orders and ditched you audaciously. Don’t demean this gizmo so much as it still has something for you before it loses your custody completely. You’d go bonkers to know that you can get gold, silver, copper and a host of other metals embedded in it. Ideally dubbed as urban mining, this theory is same for any old electronic products. Since metal prices are escalating, why not get some money out of them before dumping them. The materials recovered are reused in new electronics parts, while gold and other precious metals are melted down and sold as ingots to jewelers and investors. Some gold is even sold back to the manufacturers who use it in the circuit boards of mobile phones, because gold conducts electricity better than copper. Firms like Eco-System Recycling Co. are cashing in on the trend as a ton of ore from a gold mine produces just 5 gm (0.18 ounce) of gold on average, whereas a ton of discarded mobile phones can yield 150 gm (5.3 ounce) or more.
And from the same quantity of discarded mobile phones, you can obtain around 100 kg of copper and 3 kg of silver, among other metals. Apart from being ravenous for all those precious metals, its also makes sense to recycle electronics for a greener planet. As millions of old cell phones and other gadgets are thrown away every year, adding on to the soaring mountain of e-waste.
Via: Reuters
