IDAHO FALLS, Idaho - Electronic waste is closer than ever to having a sustainable, safe and environmentally friendly method of recycling due to award-winning technology developed at Idaho National Laboratory.
The Idaho Innovation Awards honored inventors Tedd Lister and Luis Diaz Aldana recently at a reception in Boise. It was the third major award received this year by Electrochemical Recycling Electronic Constituents of Value (E-RECOV), which uses an electrochemical cell to efficiently reclaim valuable metals and rare-earth elements from discarded electronic equipment. The technique leads to more thorough recycling of materials while significantly minimizing chemical use and waste generation, and can be accomplished domestically and economically.
The annual Idaho Innovation Awards recognize innovations, innovative professionals and companies throughout the state. Stoel Rives LLP, a full-service U.S. business law firm, has organized and hosted the program since 2006.
The technology was developed with funding from DOE's Critical Materials Institute. Other awards won by E-RECOV include Federal Laboratory Consortium Far West Regional and TechConnect National Innovation Award. This patent-pending technology is also the focus of a collaborative Small Business Voucher project with Ohio-based eMaterials Recovery, LLC. The E-RECOV process is currently available for licensing. Interested parties can contact Ryan Bills for further information. You can learn more about E-RECOV in this video from the Idaho Innovation Awards or in this INL fact sheet.
INL is one of the U.S. Department of Energy's national laboratories. The laboratory performs work in each of DOE's strategic goal areas: energy, national security, science and environment. INL is the nation's leading center for nuclear energy research and development. Day-to-day management and operation of the laboratory is the responsibility of Battelle Energy Alliance.
