Substance Restriction, Product Take-Back and Consumer Alert Regulations

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Substance Restriction, Product Take-Back and
Consumer Alert Regulations

• Technical and Compliance Issues
• Timothy McGrady
• Environmental Compliance Manager,
• LG Electronics USA
• Chairman, ASTM Committee F40 on
• Declarable Substances in Materials

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Voluntary Standards

1. SDOs do not write laws
2. Standards developed by SDOs can gain legal status
3. Via inclusion in contracts
4. Via inclusion in laws/regulations

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Standards and Conformity Assessment Model
Certified Reference Material
SI Units
Test Method
Material Standard
Contract (Purchase Order)
Buyer
Seller
4
Standards and Conformity Assessment Model
Certified Reference Material
SI Units
Test Method
Material Standard
Law (Regulation)
Business
Government
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Three Types of Product Regulations

• Substance Restrictions
• Producer Responsibility, or Take-Back
  Requirements
• Consumer Alerts
• There are, of course, Hybrids of above

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Substance Restrictions

• Place limits on concentrations of chemical
  elements or compounds
• May require either products or materials within
  products to comply
• Based primarily on human health and environmental
  concerns

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Substance Restrictions

• Examples
• European Union RoHS Restriction of the Use of
  Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and
  Electronic Equipment
• Restricts substances in materials
• California SB20/SB50 Electronic Waste Recycling
  Act of 2003
• Restricts substances in covered electronic
  products (display devices)

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Take-Back Requirements

• Require products to be collected, recovered
  and/or recycled
• Most focus on Producer Responsibility
• 3Rs Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
• Usually require fees
• Require infrastructure for collection, recovery
  and/or recycling
• May require labeling

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Take-Back Requirements

• Examples
• EU WEEE Waste Electrical and Electronic
  Equipment
• Requires producers to register and participate in
  collection/recycling schemes
• Requires labeling
• Brazil National Solid Waste Policy
• Will require take-back of batteries, electronic
  equipment, certain lamps

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Consumer Alerts

• Typically require labeling
• Focused on potential hazards
• Producer must know or find out what is in their
  products
• If certain substances present above limits, must
  inform consumer

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Consumer Alerts

• Examples
• California Proposition 65
• Requires labeling if product contains more than
  certain concentrations of substances
• Californias list 600 substances
• China RoHS, first phase
• Requires labeling whether RoHS substances are
  above limits or not

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Propagation of Regulations

• At least 48 countries have either proposed or
  implemented regulations on EEE (6 continents).
• Most are Take-back regulations.
• Several restrict substances
• Several require labeling

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Propagation of Regulations

• Many sectors impacted
• Packaging
• Automotive
• Batteries
• Toys
• Cosmetics
• Electrical and Electronic Equipment

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True Scope of EU RoHS

• RoHS Scope found in WEEE Annex IA
• Categories 1 7, 10 covered as of 7/1/06
• Categories 8 9, medical devices and control and
  measuring equipment, will be covered, perhaps by
  2010 or 2012
• Covers equipment dependent upon electric current
  or electromagnetic fields to operate

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True Scope of EU RoHS

• General exemptions
• Large-scale, fixed installation industrial
  equipment
• Military equipment
• Aerospace equipment
• Products operating at gt1500 volts DC or gt1000
  volts AC

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True Scope of EU RoHS

• Other exemptions found in RoHS Annex and
  amendments
• 2005/717/EC
• 2005/747/EC
• 2006/310/EC
• 2006/690/EC
• 2006/691/EC
• 2006/692/EC

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True Scope of EU RoHS

• Another amendment 2005/618/EC
• Establishes Maximum Concentration Values (MCVs)
  for RoHS substances
• Establishes basis of compliance as each
  homogeneous material within covered EEE
• MCV for cadmium (Cd) is 0.01 by weight
• MCV for lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), hexavalent
  chromium (Cr6), polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs)
  and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) is
  0.1 by weight

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True Scope of EU RoHS

• RoHS limits do not apply to
• Packaging (cardboard, peanuts, plastic wrap,
  etc.)
• Automobiles
• Batteries
• Only apply to products within scope of RoHS!
• Other EU directives for products above

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Other EU Directives

• Packaging and Packaging Waste 94/62/EC
  amendments 2004/12/EC and 2005/20/EC
• End-of-Life Vehicle 2000/53/EC many amendments
  (on file)
• Batteries 2006/66/EC (new directive implemented
  9/2006)
• Dangerous Substances 76/769/EEC

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True Scope of RoHS

• Just about any material covered
• Think about it you can make a lamp out of a
  rock, wood, oil (lava lamps)
• Problem materials producers cannot control where
  their materials end up, so they tend to make
  wholesale changes to materials for the biggest
  markets
• Spillover effects

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Materials Declarations

• Compilations of many regulatory requirements plus
  other non-statutory requirements
• Hundreds of substances restricted
• Requirements for many product sectors all lumped
  into one
• May be applicable to products as a whole, but not
  to each material within products

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Materials Declarations

• Example
• Stainless Steel Screw
• Cannot contain organic materials or mercury -
  will not survive processing temperatures
• Do not need to test for hexavalent chromium
  within material
• Possible restricted substances present cadmium,
  lead not typically above 0.01, 0.1
  respectively
• No need to prove other restricted substances are
  not present above limits

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ASTM F2577

• Standard Guide for Assessment of Materials and
  Products for Declarable Substances
• Published late 2006
• Is a tool for materials suppliers
• Provides means of push back for suppliers when
  asked for empirical data on many substances

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Materials Declarations

• Materials Declarations Liability Transfer
  Instruments
• UK allows Due Diligence Defense
• Do what a reasonable person would do to comply
  with regulations
• If company can show due diligence on their
  part, can point to third party
• Third party may be treated as if they committed
  infraction

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Materials Declarations

• Belgium does not allow Due Diligence Defense
• Means that producer is responsible no matter what
• However, materials declarations act as a means to
  enjoin others into lawsuits, or allows
  counter-suit
• No one wants to be the next Sony

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Materials Declarations

• Producers wanted empirical evidence, or proof,
  that suppliers products comply with materials
  declarations requirements
• This led to massive testing, done primarily in
  Taiwan and mainland China
• Tests applied were EPA test methods for air, soil
  and water
• Electronic materials are typically metal, plastic
  and ceramic
• Tests were misapplied, leading to false negative
  and false positive results
• Claims of compliance not substantiated

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SoWhere Are the Standards?

• IEC TC 111 WG3
• IEC 62321 Ed. 1 test methods failed to pass
  (October 2006)
• IPC 175x series
• Standardized materials declaration
• Hasnt found widespread acceptance
• ASTM Committee F40
• Materials-based approach
• ASTM F 2577 has been published
• Many other standards in development

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Standards and Conformity Assessment Model
Certified Reference Material
SI Units
Test Method
Material Standard
Contract (Purchase Order)
Buyer
Seller
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Materials

• Establish reasonable requirements specific to
  materials
• Require documentation on materials (test results,
  certificates of analysis)
• Recognize risks for each material (e.g., colored
  plastics)
• Work with suppliers

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Metals Evaluation

1. Carbon/Low Alloy Steel
2. Stainless Steel
3. Copper and Copper Alloys
4. Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys
5. Solders
6. Plating
7. Coatings

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Metals Evaluation

• Carbon/Low Alloy Steel
• Lead exempt up to 0.35
• Chromium in metals is in zero valence, or
  ground state not hexavalent!
• Cadmium as contaminant is possible
• Mercury gt0.1 not possible
• PBB/PBDE not possible
• Specify Pb lt0.35 Cd lt0.01
• Note L in grades stands for lead, e.g. 12L14
  or 10L18

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Metals Evaluation

• Stainless Steels
• Lead exempt up to 0.35, but not likely
• Chromium in metals is in zero valence, or
  ground state not hexavalent!
• Cadmium as contaminant is possible
• Mercury gt0.1 not possible
• PBB/PBDE not possible
• Specify Pb lt0.35 (or lower) Cd lt0.01
• Note L in grades stands for low carbon, e.g.
  304L 0.03 carbon maximum
• Note Welding in presence of oxygen could form
  hexavalent chromium!

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Metals Evaluation

• Copper and Copper Alloys
• Cadmium likely, possibly gt0.01
• Lead is exempt to 4 maximum
• Chromium in metals is in zero valence, or
  ground state not hexavalent!
• Mercury gt0.1 not possible
• PBB/PBDE not possible
• Specify Pb lt4 Cd lt0.01

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Metals Evaluation

• Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys
• Two major grades contain lead 6262 and 2018
• Lead exempt up to 0.4
• Cadmium possible gt0.01, particularly in
  high-zinc grades (7000 series)
• Mercury possible, but not likely gt0.1
• Chromium in metals is in zero valence, or
  ground state not hexavalent!
• PBB/PBDE not possible
• Specify Pb lt0.4 Cd lt0.01 Hg lt0.01

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Metals Evaluation

• Solders
• 1 source of lead in electronics
• Many exemptions e.g., high melting temperature
  solder w/Pb gt85 is exempt
• Sn-Ag-Cu (SAC) replacement solders may contain
  Pb, Cd greater than MCVs
• PBB/PBDE highly unlikely
• Hexavalent chromium highly unlikely
• Mercury is possible, but not likely
• Specify Pb lt0.1, Hg lt0.1, Cd lt0.01

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Metals Evaluation

• Plating
• Many types
• Chromium plating is not in hexavalent state (but
  surface residuals may remain)
• Lead and cadmium used as catalysts, can be
  present above MCVs (nickel plating)
• Cadmium plating exemption for contacts (RoHS
  Annex)
• Plating can be difficult to evaluate
• Specify Pb lt0.1 Cd lt0.01 Cr6 lt0.1 µg/cm2

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Metals Evaluation

• Coatings
• Many types
• Zinc (galvanized steel) may contain Pb, Cd
• Hexavalent chromium conversion coatings common on
  zinc, aluminum, cadmium and copper substrates
• Pigmented coatings (e.g. paint) can contain Pb,
  Cd, Hg or Cr6
• Specify Pb lt0.1, Cd lt0.01, Hg lt0.1, Cr6 lt0.1
  µg/cm2

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Aluminum Substrate
Hex Chrome Conversion Coating
Epoxy mounting material
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Hexavalent chromium replacements (coatings)

• Most are using trivalent chromium
• Some success in less demanding applications
• Most replacements not proven through real world
  experience
• Self-healing property of hex chrome not often
  duplicated
• Trivalent products can still test positive for
  hexavalent chromium

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Plastics Evaluation

• Could contain any RoHS substance (Hg possible,
  but unlikely)
• Pigments could be Cd, Pb, Hg, Cr6
• Pb, Cd used as stabilizers
• Hg possible in urethanes
• Bright, opaque colors should raise concerns
  (yellow, orange, red, green in particular)
• PBDEs possible
• DecaBDE exempt for now
• PBBs not manufactured since 1970s

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Standards and Conformity Assessment Model
Certified Reference Material
SI Units
Test Method
Material Standard
Contract (Purchase Order)
Buyer
Seller