Application of Taguchi method and structural equation modeling on the treatment of e-waste

Abstract

Resin, the e-waste from printed circuit board (PCB) scrap, has been used widely for the thermosetting of PCB. To obtain the optimum result of elements from e-waste in plasma technology, the understanding of parameters is urgently suggested. This study investigated the elimination of elements via an atmospheric-pressure microwave plasma reactor, considering experimental parameters: gas type, flux agent ratio, gas flow rate, pyrolysis duration, and microwave power. Moreover, the experimental data was quantitatively analyzed by structural equation modeling (SEM) via Partial Least Square (PLS). Based on the findings, the optimization parameters for removal efficiency were operated under nitrogen gas, a greater ratio of flux agents (2 g), 9 L/min of gas flow rate, pyrolysis in 10 min, and 1200 watt of microwave power. Furthermore, the type of gas was the most influential parameter in degrading the elements combined with other parameters and the removal efficiency ranging from 97.22% to 100%. Moreover, the crucible position inside the quartz tube has no significant impact on the degradation of elements. The model confirmed that crucible position and gas type exhibited significant influence in the degradation of elements. The findings of significant influence parameters give important information on the performance of an atmospheric-pressure microwave plasma reactor to treat e-waste.