Enameled Copper Wire Recycling: Current research landscape and a case study for enamel removal

The demand for copper is expected to increase in line with the electrification of renewable energy and transportation field. Continuing the trend of copper use, compared to primary source copper, researchers agree that recycling copper provides cleaner copper supply and lower environmental impact.

Enameled copper wire is an important component in electric motors. The demand for electric motors is expected to increase, so is the future waste generated from its end-of-life. Considering the sheer size of electric motor used in electric vehicles and the high-grade contained within it, landfilling should be avoided. Methods proposed by researchers to remove the enamel are mainly focused on thermal treatment. Despite thermal treatments are often associated with high energy demand and air pollution, there is minimum input from the research community regarding a more environmentally friendly approach to remove the enamel.

We were able to demonstrate that room temperature chemical treatment involving methanol washing and room temperature methanolysis can be used to remove 95% of the enamel comprised of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) and polyester polymer.