Recuperação de metais pesados de baterias usadas de celulares por biolixiviação

Abstract

Nowadays, the use of electronics, among them cell phones, has been growing intensively, and manufacturers of these devices are constantly investing in the creation of more modern equipment, new applications and marketing. The main problem is the inappropriate disposal of batteries, which have in their compositions heavy metals that contaminate the environment, reaching the living beings and, consequently, causing several pathologies to the human being. Governments, after serious heavy metal contamination accidents, have established policies aimed at correct disposal and reprocessing of the sources of these heavy metals, as well as imposing rules and penalties on producing companies that do not submit their waste management plans. However, it is necessary to set new techniques to treat these electronic wastes and to intensify the improvement of existing techniques. The focus of this work was on the recovery of metals from used lithium ion batteries. There was a survey of scientific technical papers, presenting the problem, as well as the methods for the processing of the batteries. Of these possible routes, it was emphasized the use of bioleaching as an efficient technique in the recovery of these metals and of low environmental impact. Based on this survey, it may be concluded that: bioleaching is a promising technique for the recovery of heavy metals, the major studies have achieved satisfactory recoveries when compared with other methods. Nevertheless, so far, it more investment is demanded from government and electronics manufacturing companies in scientific research to apply this method on a commercial scale.