Recycled electronics turned into precious wearables
Wednesday, January 31, 2018 - 10:20:26
With thousands of tonnes of rare minerals being discarded each year when e-waste is not properly recycled, a new project by computer maker, Dell, is setting out to change the way people see their old laptops, smartphones and tablets.
USA Today reports that at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month the firm unveiled plans to reclaim gold from unwanted devices and turn it into jewellery, including rings, cufflinks and other popular items.
Working with celebrity-back brand, Bayou with Love, Dell will be fashioning a range of stylish products from high quality gold ripped from circuitry found within many of its electronic gadgets. These will then be sold online, meaning people who recycle their devices can then buy them back and prove that they are doing their bit for the environment at the same time.
What makes this scheme especially impactful is the fact that Dell and its partners will be able to recover enough metal to make the jewellery entirely from gold, rather than having to plate a cheaper metal in gold to achieve the same effect. This shows just how much material might otherwise be wasted if old devices were sent directly to landfill sites.
While each old mobile phone or laptop does not contain enough gold to form a ring in its own right, Dell estimates that just six of its larger motherboards are needed to create a basic item as part of this new range.
This forms part of the manufacturer’s wider efforts to encourage individuals and businesses to recycle their unwanted electronics, with incentives such as scrappage schemes already in place in some regions.
So much gold is being recovered that Dell is also using it to construct cutting edge computer components, creating a circular economy which is eminently efficient.
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