Electrical and electronic products

Includes paints and poHshes, antiknock and other compounds, soldering and/or welding, electrical and electronic products, mechanical products, magnetic tape, small packages, industrial diamonds, and drilling mud. 

State Council (2009) Regulations for the administration of the recovery and disposal of electric and electronic products. Order of the State Council of the People s Republic of China, No 551 Translated from Chinese by Squires, Sanders and Dempsey... 

In 2003, the European WEEE-Directive 2002/96/EG [5] was implemented to reduce the amount of electronic waste and foster reuse, recovery and recycling of electric and electronic equipment. Closely connected to this, the restriction of hazardous substances Directive 2002/95/EG [6] (RoHS) was adopted by the EC in 2003 with the aim to restrict the use of hazardous substances in the manufacture of electric and electronic products. 

About 2.47 million kg of silver are lost each year to the domestic biosphere, mostly (82%) as a result of human activities. As discussed later, the photography industry accounts for about 47% of all silver discharged into the environment from anthropogenic sources. In 1990, about 50% of the refined silver consumed domestically was used to manufacture photographic products 25% in electrical and electronic products 10% in electroplated ware, sterlingware, and jewelry 5% in brazing alloys and 10% in other products and processes. 

The mandate within the Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) to phase out a range of hazardous materials in new electrical and electronic products by 2006, has... 

This directive accompanies directive 2002/96/EC, also known as WEEE, which addresses the handling of wastes from electrical and electronic wastes. These wastes cover a wide range of electrical and electronic products from household appliances such as refrigerators, freezers and microwaves to personal computers, cell phones to electrical toys, medical devices and electrical tools. As specified in Article 4 (1) of directive 2002/95/EC the following substances which are contained in all of the defined product groups have to be substituted from lJuly 2006on ... 

Uses. Photographic materials electrical and electronics products alloys and solders in jewelry, mirrors, flatware, and coinage... 

Many nations around the world have already made legal commitments to source reduction. For example, the European Union requires manufacturers to take back all automobiles made in Europe when consumers are ready to dispose of them, and 85 percent of those cars must be reusable or recyclable. Norway has passed a law requiring manufacturers of electrical and electronic products... 

Major applications are primarily in electrical and electronic products, auto parts, industrial products, and appliances. 

In the case of green chemistry, and more especially chemical substitution, a number of policy instruments are relevant. The traditional approach is to ban certain toxic chemicals in order to induce substitution efforts. Such bans are usually preceded by examples of successful substitutions, as it is controversial to ban chemicals when no alternatives exist at reasonable cost. Otherwise, industry is often granted generous phase-in periods, in order to develop substitutes. A third way is to grant derogations when it is hard or very costly to develop substitutes. The latter approach has been applied in the context of the EU Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive (Directive 2002/95/EC), which bans six substances in electrical and electronic products. A slightly less interventionist approach is to put restrictions on uses of certain chemicals. Other administrative approaches include the ban of chemicals, or restrictions in use, in individual operations when these apply for permits. 

Also in February 2003, the European Union enacted the Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (known as the WEEE Directive), calling for manufacturers to take end-of-life responsibility for their products (European Parliament, 2003b). Until August 15, 2005, this directive applies the principle of collective producer responsibility to wastes generated by electrical and electronic products. This principle allows companies to pool monies used for managing their wastes. However, for wastes generated by products manufactured after that date, it applies the principle of individual manufacturer responsibility, with the result... 

The directives apply to all materials used in the make up of electrical and electronic components and include paint, plastics, adhesives and rubbers, plastic parts, protective coating materials, epoxy adhesives, cyanoacrylate adhesives, polyurethane adhesives as well as complete computer motherboards. Computer and peripheral equipment are made up of different materials consisting of plastic, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, trace heavy metals, glass, foams, rubber, carbon powder and additives. Other non-metal materials posing environmental and health problems present in electrical and electronic products are beyond the scope of this book and will not be discussed here. The supportive components used in these products fall within the following ten product categories in the directive which are ... 

The banned metals in electrical and electronic products are analysed using AES methods. Other banned compounds are determined by other techniques such as FTIR, GC/MS, GC/ECD and UV/VIS spectrophotometry. 

Method for Metal Analysis of Plastics and Non-Electrical Additives Used in Electrical and Electronic Products... 

Electrical and electronic products such as computers, cell phones, TVs, and stereos are becoming a more visible part of the MSW. Some of the resins used in electronic products are PS, HIPS, ABS, PC, PP, PU, PV, PVC, polyamides, phenol formaldehyde, and blends of some of these polymers. Several technologies are being developed for the separation of different plastic types. Since the electronic parts are made from many engineering plastics, and with many different additives, it is more difficult to identify and separate the individual resins. 

Copper is used extensively for its high thermal and electrical conductivity and corrosion resistance. In the United States, the most predominant of thousands of copper and copper alloy applications include building construction (largely sheet, tube, building wire, and hardware), 45 percent electrical and electronic products, 26 percent transportation equipment, 9 percent industrial machinery and equipment, 10 percent and consumer products, 10 percent, see also Electrochemistry. 

The European Union has taken the lead in restricting the use of some hazardous materials in the manufacture of electrical and electronic hardware. The program, referred to as Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), applies to all electrical and electronic products produced in Europe and products imported from other countries, thus has very broad application. The regulations put into force on July 1, 2006, apply to lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium (Cr ), poly-brominated biphenyl (PBB), and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE). The RoHS guideline document specifies 0.1% or 1,000 ppm as the maximum amount permitted for lead, mercury, Cr" " , PBB, and PBDE and 0.01% or 100 ppm for cadmium. The document also describes guidelines for sample preparation and analyses of the restricted materials. 

Basdere B, Seliger G (2003) Disassembly factories for electrical and electronic products to recover resources in product and material cycles. Environ Sci Technol 37(23) 5354-5362... 

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