Academic Journal
Sustainable gold leaching from waste printed circuit boards using biogenic thiosulphate produced by Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans.
| Τίτλος: | Sustainable gold leaching from waste printed circuit boards using biogenic thiosulphate produced by Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Ilkhani Z; School of Engineering, Lancaster University, Bailrigg, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK., Smith C; ICT Reverse Asset Management Ltd, 2 Mannin Way, LA1 3SU Lancaster, UK., Parker K; ICT Reverse Asset Management Ltd, 2 Mannin Way, LA1 3SU Lancaster, UK., Aiouache F; School of Engineering, Lancaster University, Bailrigg, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK. Electronic address: f.aiouache@lancaster.ac.uk. |
| Πηγή: | Bioresource technology [Bioresour Technol] 2026 Sep; Vol. 455, pp. 134840. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 May 09. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Elsevier Applied Science Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 9889523 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1873-2976 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09608524 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Bioresour Technol Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Barking, Essex, England : New York, N.Y. : Elsevier Applied Science ; Elsevier Science Pub. Co., 1991- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Gold*/isolation & purification , Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans*/metabolism , Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans*/drug effects , Thiosulfates*/metabolism , Electronic Waste*, Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Oxidation-Reduction ; Kinetics ; Thermodynamics |
| Περίληψη: | This study investigated biogenic thiosulphate as an environmentally friendly alternative to cyanide for gold leaching from waste printed circuit boards. Biogenic thiosulphate, an unstable intermediate formed during sulphur oxidation by Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans, was stabilised by pH adjustment and use of inhibitors; the effects of sodium fluoride and sodium diethyldithiocarbamate were evaluated. The inhibitory effects of sodium diethyldithiocarbamate and sodium fluoride at concentrations up to 10-2 M on thiosulphate oxidation were not sufficiently strong, which was attributed to differences in metabolic pathways during bacterial growth. The highest thiosulphate concentration, 219 mg/L, was achieved without inhibitors at pH 6. The maximum gold leaching rate reached 10% after 3 days under conditions of 30 °C, 120 mg/L biogenic thiosulphate, 0.02 M Cu2+, 1 M ammonia, and 1% pulp density. Ammonia and copper were added as stabiliser and catalyst, respectively. Kinetic and thermodynamic analyses supported these findings and guided the routes for biogenic thiosulphate production as a sustainable leaching agent for gold leaching from electronic waste. Overall, this study demonstrates that biogenic thiosulphate produced by Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans is a promising alternative to chemical thiosulphate for sustainable gold recovery from electronic waste, offering a viable route toward efficient and green microbial-based processing. (Copyright © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Bioleaching; Electronic waste; Metal recycling; Precious metals |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 7440-57-5 (Gold) 0 (Thiosulfates) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260511 Date Completed: 20260716 Latest Revision: 20260716 |
| Update Code: | 20260717 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.biortech.2026.134840 |
| PMID: | 42114569 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1873-2976 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.biortech.2026.134840 |