Key takeaways
- Know-how giants are “mining” uncommon earth components and treasured metals from outdated pc {hardware} and recovered electronics to fulfill waste discount targets.
- Apple and Google are additionally recovering treasured metals and uncommon earth components.
- The corporate recycled or reused nearly 91 p.c of its decommissioned servers and different information heart {hardware} in 2024.
Microsoft is increasing digital waste assortment from its information facilities with a brand new initiative to get better uncommon earth components and treasured metals from arduous 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 components at a time when the world’s greatest provider, China, has threatened to chop off exports amid an escalating international commerce conflict.
To date, the pilot has processed 50,000 kilos of out of date drives collected at Microsoft information facilities, extracting uncommon earth components together with neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium — essential parts for magnets utilized in electrical automobiles and wind generators. The initiative has additionally recovered gold, copper, aluminum and metal.
A Microsoft govt declined to reveal how a lot of those supplies has been recovered, what proportion of end-of-life arduous drives was included underneath this system or whether or not the corporate acquired a monetary profit by taking part.
“That is the correct factor to do,” mentioned Rani Borkar, company vice chairman of Azure {hardware} and programs at Microsoft, pointing to the corporate’s 2030 zero waste purpose.
Rising demand
Microsoft, like its main rivals in cloud computing Google and Amazon, is increasing its information heart footprint at a livid tempo. Exhausting drives will account for about 80 p.c of the information storage capability at hyperscale and cloud providers services via 2028, in line with forecasts by researcher IDC. This know-how relies upon closely on uncommon earth components and treasured metals, as do many programs enabling the clear power transition.
The supplies already recovered from a number of Microsoft information 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 pc {hardware}.
Nobody is doing this at scale. The present U.S. recycling charge for uncommon earths is lower than 10 p.c, in line with Western Digital.
The mission 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 mission isn’t only a milestone, it’s a blueprint for large-scale, home recycling of important metals and supplies that can drive sustainable progress for years to return,” mentioned Jackie Jung, vice chairman 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 pc {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 conserving 3.2 million parts in circulation all through its information facilities.
A lot of that work is being delivered by Round Facilities, regional websites that deal with know-how that’s change into out of date for Microsoft’s information heart purposes. The typical lifespan of pc servers is between 4 and 6 years, relying on the applying.
By means of this program, high-value parts similar to reminiscence or central processing models are eliminated and redeployed. Some programs are donated to native organizations similar 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.