TY - JOUR

T1 - Gold Recovery from E-Waste by Food-Waste Amyloid Aerogels

AU - Peydayesh, Mohammad

AU - Boschi, Enrico

AU - Donat, Felix

AU - Mezzenga, Raffaele

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Authors. Advanced Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - Demand for gold recovery from e-waste grows steadily due to its pervasive use in the most diverse technical applications. Current methods of gold recovery are resource-intensive, necessitating the development of more efficient extraction materials. This study explores protein amyloid nanofibrils (AF) derived from whey, a dairy industry side-stream, as a novel adsorbent for gold recovery from e-waste. To do so, AF aerogels are prepared and assessed against gold adsorption capacity and selectivity over other metals present in waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste). The results demonstrate that AF aerogel has a remarkable gold adsorption capacity (166.7 mg g−1) and selectivity, making it efficient and an adsorbent for gold recovery. Moreover, AF aerogels are efficient templates to convert gold ions into single crystalline flakes due to Au growth along the (111) plane. When used as templates to recover gold from e-waste solutions obtained by dissolving computer motherboards in suitable solvents, the process yields high-purity gold nuggets, constituted by ≈90.8 wt% gold (21–22 carats), with trace amounts of other metals. Life cycle assessment and techno–economic analysis of the process finally consolidate the potential of protein nanofibril aerogels from food side-streams as an environmentally friendly and economically viable approach for gold recovery from e-waste.

AB - Demand for gold recovery from e-waste grows steadily due to its pervasive use in the most diverse technical applications. Current methods of gold recovery are resource-intensive, necessitating the development of more efficient extraction materials. This study explores protein amyloid nanofibrils (AF) derived from whey, a dairy industry side-stream, as a novel adsorbent for gold recovery from e-waste. To do so, AF aerogels are prepared and assessed against gold adsorption capacity and selectivity over other metals present in waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste). The results demonstrate that AF aerogel has a remarkable gold adsorption capacity (166.7 mg g−1) and selectivity, making it efficient and an adsorbent for gold recovery. Moreover, AF aerogels are efficient templates to convert gold ions into single crystalline flakes due to Au growth along the (111) plane. When used as templates to recover gold from e-waste solutions obtained by dissolving computer motherboards in suitable solvents, the process yields high-purity gold nuggets, constituted by ≈90.8 wt% gold (21–22 carats), with trace amounts of other metals. Life cycle assessment and techno–economic analysis of the process finally consolidate the potential of protein nanofibril aerogels from food side-streams as an environmentally friendly and economically viable approach for gold recovery from e-waste.

KW - aerogel

KW - e-waste

KW - food waste

KW - gold recovery

KW - life cycle assessment

KW - protein nanofibrils

U2 - 10.1002/adma.202310642

DO - 10.1002/adma.202310642

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 38262611

AN - SCOPUS:85183417619

JO - Advanced Materials

JF - Advanced Materials

SN - 0935-9648

M1 - 2310642

ER -