Depopulated Boards

[Go0N]

curious question i have. what does everyone do with their depopulated boards? is there a market for them? i don't use nitric so i don't see me going for silver anytime soon. haven't learned the process anyhow to do so if i did. im sitting on a few hundred lbs of mixed boards from low grade to server. mind you depopulated though. i know they still have all sorts of items on them i usually take the ic's, bga's, mlcc's, gold pins, etc. but i have these boards and just keep piling up lmao. thanks for any direction on this much appreciated guys and gals!! <3

-Go0N

 

[Go0N]

any and all suggestions are welcome even if its a "get the hell outta here with that garbage" lol just wondering before they pile up too much and i give them up on ebay for charity or get the processing done myself :lol:

 

[anachronism]

Yes but you won't like it.

Don't waste your time depopulating boards and then have to worry about what to do with a product nobody wants.

You would have got more money for them complete than you will get for whatever bits you can take off them.

Jon

 

[Go0N]

i actually go for the gold though and have made quite a bit more doing so in that along with selling/refining the chips. but the answer is not very surprising and i am ok with it. i know the boards have about 15-20 cent copper value approx. (motherboards at least) each more if i refire them in to bars further from the copper but that creates environmental issue i personally do not feel comfortable with doing. so in that being said would it be worth trying to go for silver as well off the boards (not to sell but to keep) cost efficient wise?
as well as could you direct me on how to retrieve the silver from them WITHOUT Nitric? is that even doable or worth the time to?

 

[kurtak]

board buyers will buy them - it (price) depends somewhat on the buyer &/or what is meant by "depopulated"

First question is are they fully depopulated (bare) boards - or selectively depopulated (chips pins fingers removed but other stuff like MLCCs other SMDs heat sinks transformers etc. still on the board)

Some buyers will buy them whether fully depopulated or selectively depopulated as low grade boards - about 12 -15 cents a pound

other board buyers will throw the selective depopulated in with the low grade (12 - 15 cents a pound) with another grade for bare/depopulated at 8 - 10 cents a pound

I have never had a problem selling them - you just don't get a lot for them

The question is whether it is worth depopulating or not --- IMO - MOST boards are not - I only depopulate VARY high grade boards & sell the rest as is (sorted & sold by type/category) that's because by the time you figure time, chems & dealing with waste you are better served selling as is rather then depopulating & processing

Edit to add; - NO - it is not worth going after the silver on depopulated boards

Kurt

 

[Kaiser613]

Take them to your local scrap yard, depending on just how lazy they are that day they should buy them alongside any other low grade circuit boards they buy , locally I can get about 7¢ a lb,

Beyond that your looking at a labor and equipment intensive process, pyrolyze, (so first build an efficient fume scrubber) ball mill (so build/buy ball mill) run accross millers table (so.. you know)

At this point your metal fraction will be fine particles akin to precipitate, the next step would be an electrolytic cell, most people would reccommend melting into anode bars, running through cell to remove copper from mix, then dealing with super frustrating dirty solution and pm sludge