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Waste electric and electronic equipment are chemically and physically different
from solid waste in general, such as municipal and industrial refuse. Although this
kind of waste contains valuable metals, it also contains hazardous materials that
require special treatment and recycling methods to prevent environmental contamination and health hazards. Recycling methods afford to recover several components,
like copper and precious metals. Nevertheless, due to the lack of proper facilities,
high operation costs, and stringent regulations, waste electric and electronic equipment is not recycled in many nations. Instead, this kind of waste is disposed of in
common or special landfills or even exported from wealthy nations to underdeveloped ones, where they may be recycled using methods that suffer from poor recovery rates and that do not follow labor safety or environmental protection guidelines
(Cobbing 2008).
Even though such high amounts of waste pose challenges to any management
system, waste electric and electronic equipment still represent a secondary source of
valuable resources in that these are more easily available for recycling (Parajuly
et al. 2017). Several components may be found in electrical and electronic equipment, whether they are metallic, plastic, or other substances. In cell phones, for
instance, metals account for approximately 23% of the weight of a typical device.
The remaining material consists of plastics and ceramic elements. Interestingly, one
cell phone may contain as many as 40 chemical elements (UNEP 2009).
The main hazardous elements in waste electric and electronic equipment include
lead, cadmium, mercury, and chromium (VI), in addition to polybrominated compounds like polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE),
which are used as flame retardants (Gouveia 2014).
Cell phones are manufactured using valuable natural resources and materials like
polymers, glass, and especially metals. The metal used is obtained by extraction
from ores, in energy-intensive processes. Recycling these devices at the end of their
useful life represents the opportunity to save natural resources since it avoids the
need to extract ores. Another advantage is the reduction of soil and water pollution
caused when they are improperly disposed of. Also, air pollution is mitigated due to
the lower emissions of greenhouse gases inherent to the processes used to extract
new raw materials.
This chapter discusses three main issues: (i) the growth of the international electrical and electronic equipment market and the impact thereof on the demand and
supply of elements used in the manufacture of these devices, (ii) the global scenario
of waste electric and electronic equipment, and (iii) the technology for the management and the conservation of geochemically scarce resources. The topics are presented using basic concepts such as the definition and classification of electrical and
electronic equipment and include a more in-depth discussion of the composition of
these devices and the environment and social impacts associated with the extraction
of resources used to produce them and the end-of-life fate of waste electric and
electronic equipment.
10 E-waste Management and the Conservation of Geochemical Scarce Resources
Waste electric and electronic equipment are chemically and physically different
from solid waste in general, such as municipal and industrial refuse. Although this
kind of waste contains valuable metals, it also contains hazardous materials that
require special treatment and recycling methods to prevent environmental contamination and health hazards. Recycling methods afford to recover several components,
like copper and precious metals. Nevertheless, due to the lack of proper facilities,
high operation costs, and stringent regulations, waste electric and electronic equipment is not recycled in many nations. Instead, this kind of waste is disposed of in
common or special landfills or even exported from wealthy nations to underdeveloped ones, where they may be recycled using methods that suffer from poor recovery rates and that do not follow labor safety or environmental protection guidelines
(Cobbing 2008).
Even though such high amounts of waste pose challenges to any management
system, waste electric and electronic equipment still represent a secondary source of
valuable resources in that these are more easily available for recycling (Parajuly
et al. 2017). Several components may be found in electrical and electronic equipment, whether they are metallic, plastic, or other substances. In cell phones, for
instance, metals account for approximately 23% of the weight of a typical device.
The remaining material consists of plastics and ceramic elements. Interestingly, one
cell phone may contain as many as 40 chemical elements (UNEP 2009).
The main hazardous elements in waste electric and electronic equipment include
lead, cadmium, mercury, and chromium (VI), in addition to polybrominated compounds like polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE),
which are used as flame retardants (Gouveia 2014).
Cell phones are manufactured using valuable natural resources and materials like
polymers, glass, and especially metals. The metal used is obtained by extraction
from ores, in energy-intensive processes. Recycling these devices at the end of their
useful life represents the opportunity to save natural resources since it avoids the
need to extract ores. Another advantage is the reduction of soil and water pollution
caused when they are improperly disposed of. Also, air pollution is mitigated due to
the lower emissions of greenhouse gases inherent to the processes used to extract
new raw materials.
This chapter discusses three main issues: (i) the growth of the international electrical and electronic equipment market and the impact thereof on the demand and
supply of elements used in the manufacture of these devices, (ii) the global scenario
of waste electric and electronic equipment, and (iii) the technology for the management and the conservation of geochemically scarce resources. The topics are presented using basic concepts such as the definition and classification of electrical and
electronic equipment and include a more in-depth discussion of the composition of
these devices and the environment and social impacts associated with the extraction
of resources used to produce them and the end-of-life fate of waste electric and
electronic equipment.
10 E-waste Management and the Conservation of Geochemical Scarce Resources