Material composition trends in printed circuit boards of mobile phones
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: In this research, we have investigated 45 mobile phones manufactured between 1998 and 2021. After dismantling, the resulting Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) have been mechanically processed and homogenised. From each PCB, three sample pellets were created and analysed with a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF). In addition, a post-hoc calibration was performed to correct element and sample-specific biases. This approach allowed us to analyse a large sample size and to identify element mass value trends over time. The results for precious metals show an average annual decrease -2.49 mg/PCB for Ag, -1.14 mg/PCB for Au, and -0.13 mg/PCB for Pd. By contrast, the concentrations of Cu and Ni were increasing, but due to the decreasing mass of PCBs, the overall trends remained constant. Ultimately, the applied methodological approach was effective for analysing large number of samples and provided unique insights into the material trends across different generations of mobile phones.
Authors: Aleksander Jandric, Lukas Ginzinger, Dzeneta Vrucak, Damien Latacz, Kathija Shaik, Tim Gießmann, Ricardo Gabbay de Souza, Cledwyn Mangunda, Alexander Birich, Stefan Salhofer
Language: English
Subfield: Waste Management and Disposal
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,270
Funder: Volkswagen Foundation
OpenAlex ID: W7114769693