WEEE and RoHS: How they affected plastics in electronics?

Posted by admin On August - 6 - 2008 Esta entrada está también disponible en: Spanish, Galician

Introduction

Today I will discuss how the electronics market is changing its approach to sustainability, forced mainly by legislation. When talking about electronics, many products are included: mobiles, computers, DVD and CD players, etc.

A 2007 report of the UN University estimated that the amount of new electrical and electronic equipment, EEE, put in 2005 in the EU27 market was 10.3 million tonnes. The waste generated by electronic and electrical equipment, WEEE, in 2005 was lower, between 8.3 and 9.1 million tonnes. The same report also forecasts that in 2020, WEEE will reach 12.3 million tonnes.

The volume of electronic waste generated by Europe and the concerns raised by how this waste is treated have lead, among other factors, to three European directives: WEEE, RoHS and REACH. By concerns about how WEEE is treated in developing countries, see the links under Others, at the bottom of the post.

WEEE directive, Waste electrical and electronic equipment, 2002/96/EC

This directive sets collection, recycling and recovery targets for all types of electrical and electronic goods. Thanks to the WEEE directive, producers of EEE are responsible for their products, even when they are retired from the market. Most producers have decided to join National compliance schemes, which are non profit organisations that manage WEEE for a fee. Others have instead join industry groups, like ERP recycling. These manage their own waste and therefore should be rewarded in the long term, as they are more active in implementing design changes that ease recycling.

RoHS directive, Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electronic equipment, 2002/95/EC

The European Community is well aware that products consumed in Europe end up in other countries, like China and India, where recycling conditions are not properly legislated. The toxic content present in most electronics is recycled by unprotected workers that poison themselves. This, and of course concern for the health of European users too, was the driving force behind the RoHS directive. It reduces the use of six hazardous materials:

Lead
Mercury
Cadmium
Hexavalent Chromium
Polybrominated biphenyls, PBB
Polybrominated diphenyls, PBDE

Substitution of these substances has lead to the development of new technologies, creating a competitive climate in the European industry. It has to be said that both directives also affects non-European OEMs if their products end up here.

REACH Regulation, Registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemical substances, EC 1907/2006

REACH makes manufacturers and importers of chemical substances responsible for gathering information on the products they place in the market and registering it in a central database.

Something quite funny happens to me when I explain REACH. If I’m talking to family and friends, the general answer is: “What do you mean they have to test the chemicals’ safety? Is it not already done?” Obviously, when the discussion is at work with industry participants the answer is: “Oh my God! Do you realise how much is going to cost us? It’s going to kill small companies”. Both answers are logical, but I rather be on the safe side and have chemicals tested. Is not like we didn’t get it wrong many, many times before! It is however a huge effort to industry. For this reason REACH will be introduced in phases during 11 years.

Sustainable design

Before electronics become waste, even before they are put into the market, loads can be done to decrease their negative impact on health and environment. The first thing to do, of course, is to be compliant with both RoHS and WEEE directives. This means that substances covered by RoHS have to be phased out. Just the changes in soldering material and techniques involved in phasing out lead deserve a post of their own!

Some of the other points that designers have to keep in mind when designing a new, more sustainable electronic product are:

reducing energy consumption
weight reduction
reduction of packaging use/impact
clear labelling of materials, specially toxic ones
plastic parts over 25 gr must be labelled
reduction of materials’ variety
easy to dismantle products, achieved by avoiding small pieces or by using only one type of screw
eliminating coatings not compatible with recycling, like paintings or labels
increasing recyclable content and the number of reusable parts, so that it is profitable to recycle it
extending product life, which can be done by using modular design or making a stronger product

Most of the points from the list above are pretty obvious and self explanatory. They aren’t new and OEMs have know about them for a long while. Only now, when they have become responsible for the recycling of their own products, some have truly started to apply them.

Plastics in electronics

Electronic and electrical equipment, EEE, represents 6% of plastic usage in Europe per volume, according to PlasticsEurope’s 2007 Annual report. The average plastic content in WEEE is about 30%, although this percentage is expected to grow as newer products are disposed of. The most common plastics used in electronics are thermoplastics like PS, PP, ABS or PC. Although many others are used, the variety of plastics in EEE is relatively small if compared with other plastic applications, like packaging.

The WEEE directive sets the following targets, in weight percentage, for IT, telecommunications and consumer equipment:

65%: Reuse and/or recycling, including chemical and mechanical
75%: Recovery, including recycling and incineration with energy recovery

This means that plastic must be recycled or recovered, at least partially, to reach the set targets. Thermoplastics used in EEE tend to have higher value than PE or PET and therefore recycling should be more profitable than on packaging. The smaller pieces obtained when dismantling the product, means that it is more expensive than recycling a car. On the other hand recyclers dealing with WEEE at the moment need to be able to remove the toxic substances banned by RoHS or their recyclates won’t themselves comply with RoHS.

With almost 3 million tonnes of plastic being used in EEE in Europe, the industry has been forced to rapidly adapt to the new needs brought about by the legislation. Those companies that have developed RoHS compliant technologies have now a competitive edge, as EEE producers need to switch their materials. One of the most competitive areas is the phasing out of brominated flame retardants, with the following producers now supplying RoHS compliant alternatives to them (source: Danish Ministry of Environment, 2006):

Of course, plastic producers are now offering RoHS compliant plastics and compounders already supply the electronic market with PBB and PBDE-free compounds. And brominated flame retardants are just one of the many changes that the WEEE and RoHS directives have introduced in the market. Legislative changes so demanding with industry tend to lead to a power shift, with companies adapting at different rates.

The subject is truly wide, with many technologies we could analyse. If you have any preference, please let me know, I’m always happy to research your ideas. I will try to make one post about recycled plastics as soon as possible. In the meantime, go browse the web with all the links provided below.