The microwaves rapidly heat the carbon in the e-waste—causing the carbon to react with the tiny specks of critical materials.

Virginia Tech team develop new kind of circuit board that can heal and be reshaped, potentially solving the world's growing e-waste problem.

The debris must go somewhere ... Under a tent circled with lights, workers sorted paint, electronic waste and chemicals into drums and plastic-lined boxes. Nearby, a large tub had been set ...

Both pose significant challenges to the environment and human health. Plastics and e-waste debris contaminate land, water, and air, and contain chemicals altering the quality of ecosystems.