Abstract:
Precious metal catalysts are mainly used as cata-lytic converters in motor vehicles and as petroleum refining and chemical industry catalysts. Platinum (Pt) group metals (PGMs) are mainly used as active mate-rials for catalysts, which contains palladium (Pd). This study used material flow as the framework theory and adopted methods such as review, telephone interviews, and manufacturer visits. The aim was to investigate the distribution of import, manufacture, export, and waste removal of related raw materials and products for pre-cious metal catalysts and Pd contained in Taiwan. The results showed that in 2019, Taiwan imported 1,845,557.5 kg of various precious metal catalysts and exported 653,425 kg. The potential stock in the con-sumer market was 1,077,448 kg, the amount recycled was 1,077,448 kg, the waste volume was 1,587,229.3 kg, and the abandoned overseas treatment capacity was 259,997 kg. In addition, in 2019, the import volume of Pd contained in various precious metal catalysts in Taiwan was 1413.6 kg, the export volume was 536.4 kg, the potential stock in the consumer market was 411.08 kg, the waste to be recycled was 411.08 kg, the waste volume was 1,403.84 kg, and the overseas disposal amount was 130.93 kg.
The researcher found that Taiwan’s annual disposal of waste precious metal catalysts abroad reached 259,997 kg and contained 130.9 kg of Pd. Since the average international Pd price of 2019 was US$1,536.7 dollars per troy ounce, if the waste precious metal catalysts processed outside the country had been domestically recycled and refined, it would have generated an additional profit of US$6,406,756.
This study revealed the material flows of precious metal catalysts containing the rare precious metal Pd. It provides the basis for resource recycling management in
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