Separation of Tellurium from Metal Chalcogenides through Mild Anhydrous Chlorination

The separation of tellurium from cadmium telluride is examined using a unique combination of mild, anhydrous chlorination and complexation of the subsequent tellurium tetrachloride with 3,5‐di‐tert‐butylcatecholate ligands (dtbc). The resulting tellurium complex, Te(dtbc)(2), is isolated in moderate yield and features a 10(3) to 10(4) reduction in cadmium content, as provided by XRF and ICP‐MS analysis. Similar results were obtained from zinc telluride. A significant separation between Te, Se, and S was observed after treating a complex mixture of metal chalcogenides with this protocol. These three tunable steps can be applied for future applications of CdTe photovoltaic waste.