Public Funding for International Tin Association Ltd

The objective of this project is to develop an alloy depositing system that will deliver a low stress alloy deposit suitable for many applications currently held by chromium, but it will also demonstrate new market opportunities and uses other than those held by chromium. Co-electrodeposited tin-nickel can produce alloy compositions that are not possible by pyrometallurgical processes. These alloys have been shown to have excellent corrosion and oil retention capabilities that make them an ideal candidate for replacing chromium electrocoatings. This project will demonstrate that tin-nickel can be used as a substitute for chromium coatings and thereby eliminate the use of hazardous and carcinogenic compounds. The project will also combine new chemistries and advances in electrodeposition processes with some already known technologies to develop a new alloy electrodepositing process. The elimination of hazardous chromium compounds will help comply with the REACH Directive and other health and safety legislation, as well as provide a safer working environment and reduced operating costs.

ITRI represents all aspects of the tin industry – from mining to use, recovery & recycling – in applications from electronics to engines. We have become increasingly interested in recovery & recycling of tin, and other key metals (copper, lead, nickel, etc). We have identified an emerging technology that we believe has the potential to significantly improve the recovery of these metals from waste mine tailings where metal remains from earlier less efficient extraction technologies. The technology has the ability to be ‘tuned’ to break up mineral aggregates surrounding the softer metal, leaving the metal & metal ores intact, and reduce the mineral aggregates to a coarse sand-like consistency. This holds the potential to make extraction of these metals viable.

This project seeks to establish proof of market for a new process developed by ITRI and its partner Ultromex to recover tin and other metals from printed circuit board (PCB) waste derived from waste electronics (WEEE). ITRI has announced a JV with Ultromex - Itrimex - and is currently commissioning a pilot plant in the Wirral, Merseyside. Market size and value will be assessed and the competitive landscape mapped to provide the necessary business case data for exploitation of the process. The study will focus on availability and specifications of PCB feedstock as well as market entry points for the secondary metals produced. Detailed assessment of competitive technologies will be vital in measuring commercial viability of the new process. If these supply chain and technology analyses do indeed show that the new process has a viable market, data from this project will enable processing units to be installed and operated with the lowest environmental and carbon impacts.

Awaiting Public Project Summary