How to extract silver using used cooking oil?

Finnish scientists made a breakthrough: silver from waste will be extracted using vegetable oil

Researchers from the Universities of Helsinki and Jyväskylä have developed a revolutionary eco-friendly method for extracting silver from waste. The scientific achievement, published in the prestigious Chemical Engineering Journal, could completely change the approach to recycling precious metals.

Traditional methods of silver recycling are often associated with the use of aggressive chemicals that cause serious damage to the environment.

The innovative method of Finnish scientists is based on a unique combination of fatty acids from used vegetable oil (oleic or linoleic) and diluted hydrogen peroxide. This combination effectively dissolves silver, after which the pure metal is isolated under the influence of light in a specially designed reactor.

"Our goal is to create inexpensive and sustainable methods for recycling metals, especially from complex multi-component waste," the study authors emphasized.

Silver is a critically important component in the production of electronics, solar panels, and other high-tech products. However, today less than 20% of the world's production of this metal comes from secondary sources. Natural reserves are rapidly declining, which has led to a sixfold increase in silver prices over the past quarter century.

The developed technology not only offers a solution to the problem of resource depletion but also presents a safe alternative to existing methods: the fatty acids used are non-toxic, fully biodegradable, and can be used repeatedly after silver extraction.

The method opens up broad prospects for the development of "urban mining" - extracting valuable metals from household and industrial waste, including keyboards with silver coating and various electronic components.