The article draws attention to the problem of the presence of metals: germanium (Ge), tellurium (Te), thallium (Tl), and others (Cd, Ba, Co, Mn, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sr, and Zn) in selected waste of electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). As a result of the growing demand for new technologies, the global consumption of TECs has also been increasing. Thus, the amount of metals in circulation, of which the impacts on the environment have not yet been fully understood, is constantly increasing. Due to the low content of these metals in WEEE, they are usually ignored during e-waste analyses. The main aim of this study was to determine the distribution of Ge, Te, and Tl (and other elements) in ground sieve fractions (1.0, 0.5, 0.2, and 0.1 mm) of selected electronic components (solar lamps, solar cell, LED TV screens, LCD screens, photoresistors, photodiodes, phototransistors) and to determine the possible tendency of the concentrations of these metals in fractions. This problem is particularly important because WEEE recycling processes (crushing, grinding, and even collection and transport operations) can lead to dispersion and migration of TCE pollutants into the environment. The quantitative composition of e-waste was identified and confirmed by ICP-MS, ICP-OES and SEM-EDS, and XRD analyses. It was found that Ge, Te, and Tl are concentrated in the finest fractions of ground e-waste, together with Cd and Cr, which may favor the migration of these pollutants in the form of dust during storage and processing of e-waste.

Automotive catalytic converters have a limited life time, after which the catalyst must be replaced or regenerated. The spent catalytic converters contain small amount of precious metals. Recovery of these metals is essential for environmental and economic reasons. The waste electronic equipment is also an attractive source for recovery of precious metals. Precious metals in electronic scraps are concentrated mainly in printed circuits and integrated circuits - so generally in elements that are the most diverse in their composition. Material heterogeneity of these elements is the reason why there is no universal method for processing this type of scrap. Methods used in the world for recovery of precious metals from spent auto catalytic coverters and electronic wastes by pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical methods were mentioned in this paper. The results of simultaneous melting of electronic waste with spent automotive catalysts were presented. The printed circuit boards were used as the carrier and as a source of copper. The precious metals present in the catalyst were collected in copper.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the influence of static, stirring and shaking conditions on copper, zinc, nickel and aluminium dissolution from printed circuit boards (PCBs) using the mixed acidophilic bacterial culture of Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans and Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans. The results revealed that static conditions were the most effective in zinc and aluminium dissolution. Zinc was removed almost completely under static conditions, whereas maximum of nickel dissolution was reached under the stirring conditions. The highest copper recovery (36%) was reached under stirring conditions. The shaking conditions appeared to be the least suitable. The relative importance of these systems for the bioleaching of copper and nickel decreased in the order: stirring, static conditions, shaking.

Metal supported auto catalysts, have been used in sports and racing cars initially, but nowadays their application systematically increases. In Metal Substrate (supported) Converters (MSC), catalytic functions are performed by the Platinum Group Metals (PGM): Pt, Pd, Rh, similarly to the catalysts on ceramic carriers. The contents of these metals make that spent catalytic converters are valuable source of precious metals. All over the world there are many methods for the metals recovery from the ceramic carriers, however, the issue of platinum recovery from metal supported catalysts has not been studied sufficiently yet. The paper presents preliminary results of dissolution of spent automotive catalyst on a metal carrier by means of acids: H₂SO₄, HCl, HNO₃, H₃PO₄. The main assumption of the research was the dissolution of base metals (Fe, Cr, Al) from metallic carrier of catalyst, avoiding dissolution of PGMs. Dissolution was the most effective when concentrated hydrochloric acid, and 2M sulfuric acid (VI) was used. It was observed that the dust, remaining after leaching, contained platinum in the level of 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.