A method for recovering metal and/or metal compounds which are bound in polymer materials

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This patent describes a method for recovering metals or metal compounds that are tightly embedded within polymer materials, such as those used in fuel cells (e.g., PTFE, Nafion®, polymer electrolyte membranes, electrodes). The process uses ionizing radiation (such as X-rays or electron beams) to degrade the polymer matrix, thereby releasing the embedded metals or catalysts. After irradiation, the material is soaked in a solvent, filtered, and the metals are extracted from the resulting solids using additional chemical or physical techniques.

Use CasesContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Recycling and recovery of precious metal catalysts (e.g., platinum, ruthenium) from used fuel cell components.
• Efficient reclamation of metals from polymer-based electronic waste or batteries.
• Industrial-scale recovery of expensive metals from membrane electrode assemblies in fuel cell manufacturing.
• Metal recycling in automotive, energy, and electronics industries focused on sustainable resource use.
• Processing and recycling of fluoropolymer materials, such as PTFE or Nafion®, to recover valuable metals for reuse.

BenefitsContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Enables cost-effective and scalable metal recovery from complex polymer composites, addressing resource scarcity and high material costs.
• Reduces environmental impact by promoting recycling and reducing the need for primary metal mining.
• Minimizes production waste by allowing recovery of expensive catalysts during or after device lifecycles.
• Avoids the high-energy combustion processes used in current recycling technologies, lowering overall processing costs and emissions.
• Improves sustainability of fuel cell and electronics industries by enabling closed-loop material cycles.

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Patent Abstract

It is the objective of the present invention to provide a method for recovering metal and/or metal compounds which are bound in polymer materials, such as in the polymer materials of a PEM fuel cell, which can be processed at rather low cost and at volume scale. This objective is achieved by a method for recovering metal and/or metal compounds which are bound in polymer materials, such as PTFE, Nafion®, gas diffusion layers, electrodes, polymer electrolyte membranes, comprising the steps of: a) irradiating the polymer material with ionizing radiation, under determined conditions with respect to an irratiating profile which defines at least one of irradiation pattern, irradiation energy, irradiation intensity; b) soaking of the irradiated polymer material in a liquid solving agent; c) filtering the solid non-polymeric contents from the liquid solving agent; and d) recuperating by appropriate chemical and/or physical processes the metal and/or metal compounds from the filtered non-polymeric solids. The irradiation therefore yields to significant break of the strength of the polymer materials. This decomposition releases the metal and/or metal compounds from their strong embedding in the polymer The strong attachment between the polymer and the catalyst does not exist any longer or which exist only to a very limited extent after the irradiation step. By soaking and leaching the irradiated metal and/or metal compounds polymer specimen in a liquid solvent it is possible to free the metal and/or metal compounds from the polymer structure and recuperate the metal and/or metal compounds.