Key takeaways
- Expertise giants are “mining” uncommon earth parts and valuable metals from previous laptop {hardware} and recovered electronics to fulfill waste discount objectives.
- Apple and Google are additionally recovering valuable metals and uncommon earth parts.
- The corporate recycled or reused virtually 91 p.c of its decommissioned servers and different knowledge heart {hardware} in 2024.
Microsoft is increasing digital waste assortment from its knowledge facilities with a brand new initiative to get well uncommon earth parts and valuable metals from arduous drives with out utilizing acids.
This system introduced April 17 is a collaboration between drive maker Western Digital together with Crucial Supplies Recycling and PedalPoint Recycling. It goals to scale U.S. manufacturing of uncommon earth parts at a time when the world’s largest provider, China, has threatened to chop off exports amid an escalating world commerce battle.
To date, the pilot has processed 50,000 kilos of out of date drives collected at Microsoft knowledge facilities, extracting uncommon earth parts together with neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium — essential elements for magnets utilized in electrical autos and wind generators. The initiative has additionally recovered gold, copper, aluminum and metal.
A Microsoft government declined to reveal how a lot of those supplies has been recovered, what proportion of end-of-life arduous drives was included below this system or whether or not the corporate acquired a monetary profit by collaborating.
“That is the precise factor to do,” stated Rani Borkar, company vp of Azure {hardware} and programs at Microsoft, pointing to the corporate’s 2030 zero waste aim.
Rising demand
Microsoft, like its main rivals in cloud computing Google and Amazon, is increasing its knowledge heart footprint at a livid tempo. Laborious drives will account for about 80 p.c of the info storage capability at hyperscale and cloud providers services via 2028, in keeping with forecasts by researcher IDC. This expertise relies upon closely on uncommon earth parts and valuable metals, as do many programs enabling the clear vitality transition.
The supplies already recovered from a number of Microsoft knowledge facilities are being fed again into the U.S. provide chain, which accounts for simply 15 p.c of uncommon earth manufacturing. Different massive expertise firms, together with Apple and Google, are additionally mining uncommon earths and different valuable metals from previous electronics and laptop {hardware}.
Nobody is doing this at scale. The present U.S. recycling charge for uncommon earths is lower than 10 p.c, in keeping with Western Digital.
The challenge highlighted by Microsoft makes use of a multi-step course of pioneered by Crucial Supplies Recycling:
- Out of date or previous drives are shredded utilizing conventional processes.
- That materials is sorted and processed by PedalPoint, and the magnets and metal are despatched to Crucial Supplies for sorting.
- Uncommon earth oxides are extracted utilizing a chemical recycling course of that doesn’t comprise acids.
“This challenge isn’t only a milestone, it’s a blueprint for large-scale, home recycling of important metals and supplies that may drive sustainable progress for years to return,” stated Jackie Jung, vp of worldwide operations technique and company sustainability at Western Digital.
Demand for uncommon earth metals is rising at 9 p.c yearly, and the market is projected to achieve $16.3 billion by 2030.
Microsoft’s zero-waste agenda
The uncommon earths restoration effort is only one part of Microsoft’s technique to maintain laptop {hardware} out of landfills. It recycled or reused near 91 p.c of the pc servers and different applied sciences that run its Azure cloud providers in 2024, assembly its 2025 goal and maintaining 3.2 million elements in circulation all through its knowledge facilities.
A lot of that work is being delivered by Round Facilities, regional websites that deal with expertise that’s change into out of date for Microsoft’s knowledge heart functions. The typical lifespan of laptop servers is between 4 and 6 years, relying on the applying.
By way of this program, high-value elements comparable to reminiscence or central processing models are eliminated and redeployed. Some programs are donated to native organizations comparable to colleges or group teams.
To date, Microsoft manages six Round Facilities within the U.S., Eire, the Netherlands and Singapore. It’s planning three extra: in Australia, the U.S. and Wales.
[Gain insights to move beyond incremental action and accelerate the shift to a circular economy at Circularity, April 29-May 1, Denver, CO.]
