Purity level of up to 99.99% with energy-saving full recycling process

For the first time, a tin produced in Germany with a purity level of up to 99.99% was obtained entirely from recycled material. The reasons for developing this milestone in specific recycling cycles were economic, ecological and humanitarian. Thus, the process is based on fundamental considerations. For example, how companies in Germany and Europe can become less dependent on imports and how norms and standards can be better controlled in the production of products.

The energy-saving full recycling process makes it possible to produce high-purity tin or electrolytically cleaned alloy in all formats in pyro- and hydrometallurgical plants. The state-of-the-art process can be used to recycle secondary materials such as dross, ash, runners, slimes, turnings or solder pastes. The recycled material is offered as wire, ingot, bar, bulk or similar with a purity level of 99.99%. Thus, the metal surpasses the quality of imported tin from primary raw materials. Qualitatively, it is significantly above the general market standard. It is therefore suitable for the manufacture of extremely high-quality products, such as those required in consumer electronics manufacturing. In addition, the manufacturer is the first in the world to be able to demonstrate the use of 100% recycled material with ISO 14021 certification.

The underlying effort required to recycle scrap solders and other metals depends on the composition of the recyclables. However, the assessment of the materials requires deep metallurgical expertise. The exact evaluation of the materials as well as further decisions and steps are based on boiler and furnace samples with standardized and calibrated laboratory and analytical technology. At the same time, the material origin does not necessarily say anything about the purity or quality of the material. Rather, the decisive parameters here are the type and scope of the reprocessing steps, the know-how brought in, and the performance of the aggregates. In addition, unlike other raw materials such as paper or plastics, metals can be recycled as often as required without any loss of quality and can be reused without restriction.

The specific recycling process makes it possible to manufacture quality products based on recycled materials from the domestic market and thus independently of international supply chains. The specific recycling process makes it possible to maintain material cycles and circumvent the difficult, often inhumane and non-environmentally friendly mining conditions in Southeast Asia. The sustainable recycling of tin significantly reduces energy input and curbs exploitation in the mining sector and the processing and smelting of ores to a minimum. In addition, CO2 emissions can be significantly reduced by up to 98.9% per ton of tin and the general negative impact on the entire ecosystem can be significantly reduced. Last but not least, the 360 degree process satisfies humanitarian sustainability. Finally, the mining situation in the tin mines also plays a role for more and more companies.