The growing volume of electronic waste (e-waste), projected to reach 59.4 million tons globally by 2023, represents a critical sustainability challenge. Mexico is among the leading e-waste generators in Latin America, with such waste containing valuable metals like silver (Ag⁺), crucial for circular economy strategies. Conventional extraction methods, including pyrometallurgy and hydrometallurgy, are energy-intensive and generate toxic by-products, limiting their sustainability. In this study, polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs) are explored as a green alternative for the selective recovery of silver from e-waste leachates. Membranes were synthesized using cellulose triacetate as a polymer support and tris(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate as both plasticizer and carrier. Performance was evaluated in a two-compartment stirred cell at 600 rpm over a 160-minute cycle. The feed phase contained 0.2 mM silver in 5 M HCl, while the receiving phase was a saline solution. The most efficient membrane, with 59.7% carrier content, achieved 71% silver recovery in a single cycle. UV-Vis spectroscopy at 342 nm confirmed the effective transport of Ag⁺. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was applied to assess the membranes’ operational efficiency and environmental performance. Preliminary results suggest that optimizing PIM compositions using DEA can maximize silver recovery while minimizing environmental impact, offering a viable solution for sustainable resource recovery from electronic waste.

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support from the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, particularly the Graduate Division of the Faculty of Chemical Engineering. This research was also supported by SECIHTI. Special thanks are extended to the technical staff for their valuable assistance throughout the experimental work.