Visit the Yaskawa Electric Europe web site

RoHS to be discussed at recycling conference

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Nov 2, 2001

Six 'hazardous' substances will be banned from use in electronics and electrical equipment by the RoHS directive, but for some applications there are no suitable drop-in replacements, says ERA

"Six 'hazardous' substances will be banned from use in electronics and electrical equipment by the RoHS directive.

Therefore, manufacturers face the problem of finding and using alternative materials.

However, for some applications there are no suitable drop-in replacements at present", warns Paul Goodman, Senior Consultant in reliability and failure analysis at ERA Technology Ltd in his paper to be presented at the 'Recycling Electrical and Electronic Equipment' conference to be held on 6-7 November 2001.

"There is still some argument over the final form of the legislation but manufacturers have known for some time that the use of these six materials will be restricted and so have been working on developing alternatives with mixed success", explains Paul Goodman.

The six materials (lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB and PBDE flame retardants) are used for a wide variety of applications and in many different products.

For example lead in solder is well known and much has been published on solders containing lead-free alternatives.

Alternatives for the materials are increasingly becoming available.

"However, in nearly all the cases there is no single drop-in replacement and so the performances of alternatives are not identical and the processes which are required to use them can be completely different", Paul Goodman continues.

"Therefore careful examination of all alternatives is needed and often a compromise will have to be accepted.

Even where there are alternatives, considerable effort will be required to identify all the relevant parts, carry out the changes and ensure continuing reliability." Paul Goodman's paper summarises examples of alternatives for the more common applications for the six hazardous materials, and analyses how alternative materials affect performance.

Paul Goodman is part of ERA's team of specialists offering consultancy to electrical and electronic equipment manufacturers to help them make the change from these hazardous materials to alternatives.

ERA can help clients identify where hazardous materials are currently used, suggest appropriate alternatives and implement these changes in production.

The intensive two-day conference 'Recycling electrical and electronic equipment', organised by ERA Technology Ltd, will examine the impact, implications and implementation of the RoHS directive as well as the WEEE (Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment) directive.

It concentrates on the latest developments in recycling technologies, looks at how industry is preparing for the changes, and includes case studies showing how individual companies have faced up to the challenges.

Delegates will achieve a greater understanding of how the environmental directives will impact industry and how companies can achieve competitive advantage by staying one step ahead.

The conference will take place on 6-7 November 2001 at the Regents Park Marriott Hotel, London.