• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.414-417
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• 2014

LED scraps consisting of highly crystalline GaN and their leaching behavior are comprehensively investigated for hydro-metallurgical recovery of rare metals. Highly stable GaN renders the leaching of the LED scraps extremely difficult in ordinary acidic and basic media. More favorable state can be obtained by way of high temperature solid-gas reaction of GaN-$Na_2CO_3$ powder mixture, ball-milled thoroughly at room temperature and subsequently oxidized under ambient air environment at $1000-1200^{\circ}C$ in a horizontal tube furnace, where GaN was effectively oxidized into gallium oxides. Stoichiometry analysis reveals that GaN is completely transformed into gallium oxides with Ga contents of ~73 wt%. Accordingly, the oxidized powder can be suitably leached to ~96% efficiency in a boiling 4 M HCl solution, experimentally confirming the feasibility of Ga recycling system development.