1 Introduction
1.1 Overview of Electrical and Electronic Component
Industry
The electronic industry came into being about 1883, a decade after Thomas Edison
invented the light bulb. His preliminary work on vacuum tube was complimented by
Lee De Forest, who carried out a detailed research on Edison’s discovery and
patented the work. The industry earlier assumed slow growth with the production
of few components that have less practical applications in electronics. The advent of
World War I (WW I) spurred the industry’s pace of improvement. Discoveries like
piezoelectricity, in 1808, were effectively used to produce underwater acoustic wave
in submarine-detecting sonar during WW I, before being used as control devices in
radios. This was commercialized after WW I for broadcasting and public usage
between 1920s and 1930s. The industry expands in research and output during the
period. The arrival of integrated circuits (ICs) and other advanced semiconductors
shortly after the mid-twentieth century gave the industry a geometrical expansion,
and so the demand for electrical components sowed high. Between 1960s and 1970s,
introduction of some equipment like computers, electronic scientific apparatus, and
those used in space and communication sectors opened a wider demand for more
electronic components like rectifiers, piezoelectric devices, and host of others
essential to those equipments. The industry’s revenue also climbed along expansion
such that toward the end of 1970s, it was more than eight times before WW I.
The introduction of personal computer and its accessories, telecommunications
equipment, and electronics into the stream of industrial and consumer products,
during the 1980s, led to a boost in electronic industry. This growth in research and
production in the electrical and electronic industry soared geometrically through the
1990s, and till today it is now one of the largest and the fastest growing domains in
the manufacturing industry [1], and this is expected to be on the increase annually
through the mid-2000s [2]. Countries like Malaysia, Canada, Taiwan, Mexico, and
Japan are top on the list in terms of importation of electrical components from the
USA. Japan dominated the USA. Miscellaneous components imports with a staggering 53% share pioneer companies in the electrical and electronic world like the
British Marconi Company, the National Electric Signaling Company of the US
General Electric Company (formed by Edison), and the Westinghouse and the
Radio Corporation of America. Today most of the high-tech companies combine
computer with electronics and some of such include Hewlett-Packard Co, Toshiba
Corp, NEC Corp, and others. Table 4.1 shows the top ten worldwide electronics/
computer industries surveyed in 1992.
By the year 2001, the profile of the leading electrical and electronic component
industry is given in Table 4.2.
The electrical and electronic components’ industries worldwide are valued at
1 trillon US dollars and grow on the average of 7–8% per year [1]. Worldwide
4 Electrical and Electronic Wastes Treatment
117
1.1 Overview of Electrical and Electronic Component
Industry
The electronic industry came into being about 1883, a decade after Thomas Edison
invented the light bulb. His preliminary work on vacuum tube was complimented by
Lee De Forest, who carried out a detailed research on Edison’s discovery and
patented the work. The industry earlier assumed slow growth with the production
of few components that have less practical applications in electronics. The advent of
World War I (WW I) spurred the industry’s pace of improvement. Discoveries like
piezoelectricity, in 1808, were effectively used to produce underwater acoustic wave
in submarine-detecting sonar during WW I, before being used as control devices in
radios. This was commercialized after WW I for broadcasting and public usage
between 1920s and 1930s. The industry expands in research and output during the
period. The arrival of integrated circuits (ICs) and other advanced semiconductors
shortly after the mid-twentieth century gave the industry a geometrical expansion,
and so the demand for electrical components sowed high. Between 1960s and 1970s,
introduction of some equipment like computers, electronic scientific apparatus, and
those used in space and communication sectors opened a wider demand for more
electronic components like rectifiers, piezoelectric devices, and host of others
essential to those equipments. The industry’s revenue also climbed along expansion
such that toward the end of 1970s, it was more than eight times before WW I.
The introduction of personal computer and its accessories, telecommunications
equipment, and electronics into the stream of industrial and consumer products,
during the 1980s, led to a boost in electronic industry. This growth in research and
production in the electrical and electronic industry soared geometrically through the
1990s, and till today it is now one of the largest and the fastest growing domains in
the manufacturing industry [1], and this is expected to be on the increase annually
through the mid-2000s [2]. Countries like Malaysia, Canada, Taiwan, Mexico, and
Japan are top on the list in terms of importation of electrical components from the
USA. Japan dominated the USA. Miscellaneous components imports with a staggering 53% share pioneer companies in the electrical and electronic world like the
British Marconi Company, the National Electric Signaling Company of the US
General Electric Company (formed by Edison), and the Westinghouse and the
Radio Corporation of America. Today most of the high-tech companies combine
computer with electronics and some of such include Hewlett-Packard Co, Toshiba
Corp, NEC Corp, and others. Table 4.1 shows the top ten worldwide electronics/
computer industries surveyed in 1992.
By the year 2001, the profile of the leading electrical and electronic component
industry is given in Table 4.2.
The electrical and electronic components’ industries worldwide are valued at
1 trillon US dollars and grow on the average of 7–8% per year [1]. Worldwide
4 Electrical and Electronic Wastes Treatment
117