Key takeaways
- Know-how giants are “mining” uncommon earth parts and treasured metals from outdated laptop {hardware} and recovered electronics to satisfy waste discount targets.
- Apple and Google are additionally recovering treasured 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 better uncommon earth parts and treasured metals from onerous drives with out utilizing acids.
This system introduced April 17 is a collaboration between drive maker Western Digital together with Important 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 struggle.
Up to now, the pilot has processed 50,000 kilos of out of date drives collected at Microsoft knowledge facilities, extracting uncommon earth parts together with neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium — essential elements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 share of end-of-life onerous drives was included beneath this system or whether or not the corporate obtained a monetary profit by collaborating.
“That is the suitable factor to do,” mentioned Rani Borkar, company vp of Azure {hardware} and techniques 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. Exhausting drives will account for about 80 p.c of the info storage capability at hyperscale and cloud companies services via 2028, based on forecasts by researcher IDC. This know-how relies upon closely on uncommon earth parts and treasured metals, as do many techniques 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 giant know-how corporations, together with Apple and Google, are additionally mining uncommon earths and different treasured metals from outdated electronics and laptop {hardware}.
Nobody is doing this at scale. The present U.S. recycling fee for uncommon earths is lower than 10 p.c, based on Western Digital.
The venture highlighted by Microsoft makes use of a multi-step course of pioneered by Important Supplies Recycling:
- Out of date or outdated drives are shredded utilizing conventional processes.
- That materials is sorted and processed by PedalPoint, and the magnets and metal are despatched to Important Supplies for sorting.
- Uncommon earth oxides are extracted utilizing a chemical recycling course of that doesn’t comprise acids.
“This venture 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 come back,” mentioned Jackie Jung, vp of world 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 preserve 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 companies in 2024, assembly its 2025 goal and holding 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 know-how that’s turn into out of date for Microsoft’s knowledge heart purposes. The typical lifespan of laptop servers is between 4 and 6 years, relying on the appliance.
By way of this program, high-value elements similar to reminiscence or central processing models are eliminated and redeployed. Some techniques are donated to native organizations similar to colleges or group teams.
Up to now, 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.
