Green Electronics

GREEN ELECTRONICS

Proposed byS Poonam

What is GREEN ELECTRONICS..??

• Electronic products and components that have minimum environmental effects throughout their lifecycle

• No environmentally harmful materials

• Eco-efficient manufacturing process

• Consume less power

• Fully recyclable, no hazardous waste

• New electronics applications that enable sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions both in industrial and consumer sectors

Why should companies invest in Green Electronics?

Strong trend towards sustainability and eco-efficiency in all industrial sectors.

Huge future market potential for green applications both in industrialized and developing Countries.

Consumer awareness on environmental issues is constantly increasing.

Cost-savings for manufacturers in energy consumption,materials,packaging, logistics, waste management etc.

History of green electronics

• In 1992, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched Energy Star, a voluntary labelling program which is designed to promote and recognize energy-efficiency in monitors, climate control equipment, and other technologies.

• The term "green electronics" was probably coined shortly after the Energy Star program began.

• Concurrently, the Swedish organization TCO Development launched the TCO Certification program to promote low magnetic and electrical emissions from CRT-based computer displays.

GREEN ELECTRONICS

BASIC AIM

Green Electronics focuses on elimination of harmful chemicals, elements and

components, and recycling of electronic products at the end of life.

INTRODUCTION

• Electronics has made life easier for us. Certain materials in the electronic goods and products are toxic and harmful to the nature and the humans especially.

• Green Electronics focuses on the elimination of these harmful and toxic chemicals and elements from the products, and recycling the electronic items at the end of their life.

• Among the harmful chemicals are Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, Polybrominated Diphenyls Ethers(PBDE).

• Many Parliaments of the different Countries has passed the legislation to restrict the use of Lead and other harmful materials for the manufacture of electronics products.

E-WASTE

The E-WASTE components in computers include:

• Computer circuit boards containing heavy metals like lead and cadmium

• Computer batteries containing cadmium and Mercury in flat screens and switches.

• Polybrominated diphenyl's ethers present in older capacitors and transformers.

• Cathode ray tubes with lead oxide and barium.

• Brominated flame--retardants used on PCBs, cables and plastic casing.

• Poly--vinyl chloride (PVC) coated copper cables and plastic computer casings that release highly toxic dioxins and fumes when burnt to recover valuable metals.

Other E-WASTE refers to

• Audio and stereo equipment

• VCRs and DVD players

• Telephones, cellular phones and other wireless devices

SOURCES OF E-WASTE

• IT & Telecom Equipment's

• Large Household Appliances

• Small Household Appliances

• Consumer & Lighting Equipment's

• Electrical & Electronic Tools

• Toys, Leisure & Sports Equipment

• Medical Devices

• Monitoring & Control Instruments

HAZARDS IN E-WASTE

LEAD - Lead causes damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, blood systems, kidney and reproductive system in humans. It was first banned from gasoline in the 1970s.

CADMIUM - Cadmium compounds are toxic with a possible risk of irreversible effects on human health, and accumulate in the human body, particularly the kidneys.

MERCURY - Mercury can cause damage to various organs including the brain and kidneys, as well as the foetus.

BARIUM- Barium is a soft silvery-white metal that is used in computers in the front panel of a CRT, to protect users from radiation. Studies have shown that short-term exposure to barium has caused brain swelling, muscle weakness, damage to the heart, liver, and spleen.

HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM/CHROMIUM VI - Chromium VI is used as corrosion protection of untreated and galvanized steel plates and as a decorative or hardener for steel housings. Chromium VI can cause damage to DNA and is extremely toxic in the environment.

BERYLLIUM - Beryllium is a steel-grey metal that is extremely lightweight, hard, a good conductor of electricity and heat, and is non-magnetic. It produces skin disorders and lung disease.

TONERS - Is the plastic printer cartridge containing black and colour toners. It can cause cancer after prolonged exposure.

PHOSPHOR AND ADDITIVES - Phosphor is an inorganic chemical compound that is applied as a coat on the interior of the CRT faceplate. Highly toxic it cause skin disorders and eye problems

Why LEAD is used in electronic components..?

Natural Properties:

• Low Melting Point• High Strength• Ductility• Fatigue Resistance• Malleability• Long Life

• To meet performance requirement in a cost efficient manner.

• Lead can be easily refined and remoulded • Lead is essential to the production of many highly technical

products, from foetal monitors to fibre optics.

• It plays a vital role in space exploration, energy conservation and telecommunications.

Other Points as to why LEAD is used in Electronic Components and Device:

FACTS of LEAD..!

• 90% of all Electronic goods and products are made up of LEAD.

• Semiconductors are the basis of all the electronic components and lead is the glue that binds all the semiconductor devices to make them work efficiently.

• Lead alloy solders help to transfer data from your computer.

• Earlier, lead was even used in paints, ceramic glazes and plumbing solders. But now its been discarded due to its poisoning effects.

• So at the end of this session it can be inferred that though Lead is an important element for the electronic industry, but its replacement is quite difficult for the researchers and engineers.

CONSEQUENCES OF USING LEAD SOLDERS

• Lead is said to have cause serious chronic damage.

• From health point of view, it is a risk using lead in tin solders for human exposure.

• The humans are most prone to lead via the Environment.

• Toxic materials and emissions contaminate the air and water resources.

DISPOSAL OF E-WASTE

E-Waste can be disposed in three ways:

A. INCINERATION

B. LANDFILLING

C. RECYCLING

INCINERATION

• Incineration basically entails to destroying the e-waste including computers and other electronic devices and components by burning.

• Incineration is particularly dangerous because of the variety of different substances found together in electro scrap.

• The burning of these components results into high concentrations of metals, including heavy metals in the slag, fly ash, flue gas and filter cake.

• 90%of cadmium results into fly ash and 70% of mercury results into filter cake.

• Some of the electro scrap can also be sent to cement kilns for use as an alternative to fuel.

LANDFILLING

• Landfilling involves disposing the E-waste by burning it, especially as a method of filling in and reclaiming excavated pits.

• Major Disadvantage: Even the best “state-of -the-art” landfills don’t remain completely tight throughout their lifetimes and a certain amount of chemical and metal leaching does occur.

• Mercury leaches when certain electronic devices, such as circuit breakers, are destroyed. The same is true for PCBs from condensers.

• When brominated flame--retarded plastic or cadmium are landfilled, both PBDE and cadmium may leach into the soil and groundwater.

• Even significant amount of lead ions are dissolved from broken lead containing glass, such as the cone glass of cathode ray tubes, when mixed with acid waters.

RECYCLING• Of the three discussed, Recycling is the best

method.• Most items that recyclers receive are manually

dismantled as the first step to separate all of the commodities.

• Items that cannot be dismantled in an efficient manner are put through a shredding process.

• Whole e-scrap or dismantled parts can be shredded down to pieces that are less than 2 inches in diameter.

• They can then be separated through a series of devices all connected via conveyor belts in a process that is 95% automated.

• The recycled products include iron, copper, aluminium, plastic, glass, precious metal mix, and shredded circuit boards.

Types of Electronics recycling

• Computers• Mobile Phones• Televisions• Computer Parts• Toner Cartridges• Monitors• iPods• DVD Players & VCRs• Telephones• Cables/Wires• Printers• Portable Electronics• Home Entertainment• Calculators• All Small Electronics

Advantages of Recycling

• Recycling e-waste saves energy, and can prevent toxins found in electronics like mercury, lead, and cadmium from entering the air or the water supply in landfill burn-smoke or runoff.

• By recycling e-waste you're being a responsible custodian of the planet's limited resources, and you're helping ensure e-waste toxins don't cause health problems for people and ecosystems.

Comparison of green electronics with earlier electronics

Earlier electronics

• CRT monitors and desktop computers were used, which consume a lot more electricity and energy usage. A desktop model uses 200-400 watts.

• In fact, most computers drain more power than they need during normal operation, leading to higher electrical bills.

• 90% of all Electronic goods and products are made up of LEAD. Lead causes damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, blood systems, kidney and reproductive system in humans.

• Cost of electronics equipment's were high. The components were more heavy and bulkier. Efficiency of electronic components are very less.

• It is hazardous and environmentally harmful materials

Green electronics

• Green electronics refers to recycle or reuse their electronics products once they have reached end-of-life. They focus on elimination of harmful elements such as lead, cadmium, mercury , etc.

• Manufacture electronic components, computers, and other associated subsystems with minimal impact on the environment.

• It produces electronics products that consume less energy such as LED lightning’ low power electronics’ portable device.

• It non-toxic, eco-efficient products and manufacturing processes, Environmentally friendly electronics solutions .It is fully recyclable.

• The cost is low, electronic components are more flexible and user friendly.

• Few examples - Printed (disposable) sensors, Water taps with optical sensors, sensor technologies for monitoring industrial processes.

FEW EXAMPLES..

o Earlier electronics o Green electronics

What is required to be done?

By Government

Regulation Laws & Administrative procedures.

Encourage reuse.

Educate e-waste Mgt.

R&D.

Antidumping measures.

Support to NGOs.

By Industry

Proper disposal by generators

Label recycling material.

Easy disassembly of components.

Encourage green procurement.

Green packaging.

Customers to be educated for disposal.

Buy back options.

By Citizens

Donate products.

No disposal through house holds.

Recycle containers.

Energy efficient products.

Use minimum packaging.

Buy certified goods

Environmental labels towards green marketing

• Eco Mark

• Eco Logo

• EPEAT

Is a certification mark issued by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The marking scheme was started in 1991. One of the purposes of the mark is increasing awareness among the consumers towards reducing environment impact.

A Private, for profit eco-label organization under a partnership with Environment Canada .It develops standards , certifies products, helps market.

EPEAT® is a comprehensive environmental rating that helps identify greener computers and other electronic equipment.

Guide to greener electronics

Future focus area of green electronics !

Electronics products with minimized power consumption

• Low-power electronics and LED lighting• Optical user interfaces backlighting low

power illumination.

Decentralized energy production

• Printable solar cells• Energy harvesting solutions• New battery technologies

Green computing represents a responsible way to address the issue of GLOBAL WARMING.

Few tips towards going green

Only buy Green label PCs and hardware that can be completely recycled

Only connect to the internet when you know you will use the connection

Take that CRT monitor to the recycling centre

Switch off the monitor, printer, scanner and other peripherals when not in use. And use natural ventilation in the computer room

Always switch off speakers, modem, monitor at the wall socket if not using.

Disable your screen saver it can prevent your monitor and computer from going into idle/sleep mode.

Use laptops instead of desktop computers, also cuts down on energy usage

CONCLUSION Green electronics deals with creating awareness about the

electronic wastes that are being introduced very rapidly.

Green computing represents a responsible way to address the issue of “global warming”.

The knowledge of green electronics is essential for a good electronics engineer for good future.

By adopting green computing practices, business leaders can contribute positively to protect the environment while also reducing energy and paper costs.

It focuses on disposal, recycling, designing products that are less hazardous, etc.

Thank you