Abstract
The Japanese government has recently been promoting the recycling of small end-of-life electric and electronic equipment (EEEE) while also being instrumental in the collection of precious metal contents, including rare metals in EEEEs. A standard method for a multi-elemental analysis, however, has not yet been proposed. This report presents a proposal regarding pre-standard methods for simultaneous, multi-elemental analysis (39 elements) by which a more exact recycling potential for these metals can be obtained. The proposed methods are revisions of IEC 62321, established for the regulation of six hazardous substances (lead, etc) found in electronic products as the IEC method applies to all kinds of materials, polymers, metals and electronics. Essentially, the recommended pretreatment methods are : (1) aqua-regia dissolution/alkali fusion for all metals except Ag and Ta ; (2) HF dissolution for Ta ; and (3) 6M HCl dissolution for Ag. Both ICPAES and ICPMS are recommended for measuring accurate determination and detection limits of 1 mg/kg. The methods proposed will need to be improved with minor revisions after further research.
