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RawMaterials PS4 ENG
RawMaterials PS4 ENG
Where are they and how to recycle them.
P
S4 is one of the most
famous consoles in the
world; over 30 million
PS4s have been sold
around the world
before January 2016.
It contains a lot of raw
materials, most of which are
in the magnet of the hard
disk, in the PCBs(printed
circuit boards) and in the
screen that most of the people
use to play.
______________________________
Raw materials: what are
they and where do they insulating board known as the transistors, diodes, integrated
come from? substrate. circuit chips, and others.
Raw materials are used in the Individual electronic Many electronic products
primary production or components are placed on the containing PCBs have recently
manufacturing of a good. Raw surface of the substrate and become obsolete within 1218
materials are often natural soldered to the months. The potential for
resources such as oil, iron, interconnecting circuits. these obsolete products
and wood. Contact fingers along one or entering the wastestream and
Before being used in the more edges of the substrate ending up in landfills has
manifacturing process raw act as connectors to other concerned many
materials are often altered to PCBs or to external electrical environmentalists . Recycling
be used in different processes. devices such as onoff efforts for electronic products
Raw materials can be found in switches. include refurbishing older
our commodities, wich are The substrate most commonly products and reselling them to
bought and sold on the world used in printed circuit boards customers that do not need, or
market. is a reinforced glass fiber have access to, newer, state
China extracts more than 90% (fiberglass) exposy resin with a oftheart electronics. Other
of the rare earths that are copper foil bonded onto one electronics are disassembled
used in the world. This creates or both sides. PCBs made and the computer parts are
a geopolitical problem because from paperreinforced phenolic salvaged for resale and reuse
this nation has the control of resin with a bonded copper foil in other products. The
the products. are less expensive and are components made in silicon
often used in household can be completely recycled. In
PCBs: electrical devices. many European country,
A printed circuit board, or The printed circuits are made legislation requires
PCB, is a selfcontained of copper, which is either manufacturers to buy back
module of interconnected plated or etched away on the their used products and make
electronic components found surface of the substrate to them easily disposable them
in devices ranging from leave the pattern desired. The safe for the environment
common beepers, or pagers, copper circuits are coated with before disposal. For
and radios to sophisticated a layer of tinlead to prevent manufacturers of electronics,
radar and computer systems. oxidation. Contact fingers are this means they must remove
The circuits are formed by a plated with tinlead, then and reclaim the toxic solder
thin layer of conducting nickel, and finally gold for from their PCBs. This is an
material which can be excellent conductivity. expensive process and has
deposited, or Purchased components spurred research into the
"printed," on the surface of an include resistors, capacitors, development of nontoxic
means of making electrical
connections. One promising
approach involves the use of
watersoluble, electrically
conductive molded plastics to
replace the wires and solder.
Magnets:
A magnet is a material that
can exert a noticeable force on
other materials without
actually contacting them. This
force is known as a magnetic
force and may either attract or
repel. While all known
materials exert some sort of
magnetic force, it is so small
in most materials that it is not
readily noticeable. With other
materials, the magnetic force
is much larger, and these are
referred to as magnets. The
Earth itself is a huge magnet.
When making magnets, the possible, however, and a more laptop computer, a fax
raw materials are often more comprehensive approach to machine, or another device.
important than the recycling permanent magnets Finally, the power supply is an
manufacturing process itself. needs to be developed. electronic circuit that supplies
The materials used in LCDs current to the LCD.
permanent magnets A working LCD consists of Equipment makers who use
(sometimes known as hard several components: display LCDs often purchase the
materials, reflecting the early glass, drive electronics, control power supplies separately.
use of alloy steels for these electronics, mechanical In all LCDs, the liquid crystal
magnets) are different from package, and power supply. is sandwiched between two
the materials used in The display glass —between layers of glass or transparent
electromagnets (sometimes which the liquid crystals lie— plastic called substrates. Just
known as soft materials, is coated with row and column any glass will not do. If the
reflecting the use of soft, electrodes and has contact glass has many sodium or
malleable iron in this pads to connect drive other alkali ions, they can
application). electronics (electric current) to move to the glass surface,
Barium and the barium each row and column combine with any moisture
compounds used to make electrode.The drive electronics that is there, and alter the
barium ferrite permanent are integrated circuits that electric field pattern and liquid
magnets are poisonous and supply current to "drive" the crystal alignment. To
are considered toxic materials. row and column electrodes. eliminate that, LCD makers
Companies making barium The control electronics are also either use borosilicate glass,
ferrite magnets must take integrated circuits. They which has few ions, or they
special precautions in the decode and interpret the apply a layer of silicon dioxide
storage, handling, and waste incoming signals—from a to the glass.
disposal of the barium laptop computer, for example The silicon dioxide prevents
products. —and send them to the drive the ions from touching any
Electromagnets can usually be electronics. The mechanical moisture. An even simpler
recycled by salvaging the package is the frame that solution is to use plastic
component iron cores and connects the printed circuit instead of glass. Using plastic
copper wiring in the coil. boards for the drive and also makes the display lighter.
Partial recycling of permanent control electronics to the Also the Indium is going to be
magnets may be achieved by display glass. This package replaced by other materials
removing them from obsolete also strengthens and protects like graphenor the ZnO:Al in
equipment and using them the display glass and anchors the ITOs of the dysplays.
again in similar new the entire display to the device
equipment. This is not always using the LCD, whether it is a
Marco Foltran, Giorgio Davoli, Federico Capitanio, Ilario Placanica.