STUDY ON THE ANALYSIS OF SOME COMMON ELECTRONIC WASTES NEED FOR GREEN TECHNOLOGY

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1 WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES K. Rajasekar et al. World Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Volume 3, Issue 5, Research Article ISSN STUDY ON THE ANALYSIS OF SOME COMMON ELECTRONIC WASTES NEED FOR GREEN TECHNOLOGY K. Rajasekar 1*, T. Ramachandramoorthy 2, A. Paulraj 3, and M. Soji George 2 1 Department of Chemistry, Govt. Arts College, Ariyalur , India 2 PG & Research Department of Chemistry, Bishop Heber College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli , India 3 Department of Chemistry, St.Joseph s College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli , India Article Received on 04 March 2014, Revised on 21 March 2014, Accepted on 27 April 2014 *Correspondence for Author Rajasekar Sekar Department of Chemistry, Govt. Arts College, Ariyalur , India ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to create awareness among the public to reduce, reuse and recycle the electronic articles. In recent years, the technological revolution has resulted in the production of huge amount of electronic waste in all countries. India generates around 0.3 million tons of e-waste annually which is likely to grow exponentially to 1.6 million tons by The present work involves the collection, separation, analysis and treatment of domestic (like TV, radio, computer, cell phone, Camera, etc.,) and laboratory (computers, conductivity bridges, potentiometers, ICs, LEDS, etc.,) electronic waste materials. Their individual components were chemically analyzed before and after incineration and separated into three types, viz., materials which can be (a) reused, (b) recycled and (c) disposed. The qualitative analysis of a few e-waste components reveal that the presence of plastic / other organic polymers in addition to the metals like lead, copper, aluminium, nickel, cadmium, chromium, selenium, iron etc., A few electronic components were found to be suitable for reuse [resistors, transistors, etc.,] some metals can be separated by conventional methods and extracted. The analysis and treatment of e-waste materials not only depend on the external components but also on the internal components [physical & chemical properties] and the technology by which the equipment works. Keywords: Electronic waste, Analysis, Incineration, Reuse / Recycling. Vol 3, Issue 5,

2 INTRODUCTION Electronic waste, e-waste, e-scrap or Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipments (WEEE) describe loosely discarded, surplus, obsolete or broken electrical or electronic devices. Informal processing of electronic waste in developing countries causes serious health and pollution problems 1. Some electronic scrap components, such as cathode ray tubes contain contaminants such as lead, cadmium, beryllium, mercury and brominated flame retardants 2. Even in developed countries recycling and disposal of e-waste may involve significant risk to workers and communities and great care must be taken to avoid unsafe exposure during recycling operations. Scrap industry s and US Environmental Protection Agency s Officials agree that materials should be managed with caution and environmental dangers of unused electronics have not been exaggerated 3. In recent years, the technological revolution has resulted in the production of huge amount of electronic waste in all countries. According to a report by United Nations of Environment Program titled, "Recycling - from E-Waste to Resources," the amount of e-waste being produced by United States the world leader in producing electronic waste, tossing away about 3 million tons each year. China already produces about 2.3 million tones [2011 estimate] domestically and despite having banned e-waste imports, China remains a major e- waste dumping ground for developed countries. India generates around 0.3 million tons of e- waste annually which is likely to grow exponentially to about 2 million tons by Through the Indian Supreme Court banned the import of hazardous waste in 1997, almost 600 tons of e-waste still entered the country in the last six months under the guides of charitable or re-usable materials, all duty-free. It is estimated that the US alone exports 80 percent of its e-waste to China, India and Pakistan 5-6. The present work aims at reducing the pollution due to the electronic waste materials [after analyzing the components before and after incineration] and to emphasis the use of biodegradable electronic components. MATERIALS AND METHODS 1.Collection of e-waste materials The commonly available domestic and laboratory e-waste materials were collected from houses, physics, chemistry, pharmaceutical and computer science laboratories and from various electronic service centers (from October 2013 to December 2013) located at Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India 7. Vol 3, Issue 5,

3 2.Separation of materials: The e-waste devices viz., television, radio, computer, cell phone, electronic watch, ph meter, potentiometer, conductometer were collected. The assembled internal parts / components [transistor, resistor, potentiometer, diode, light emitting diode, capacitor, fuse tube, condenser, transformer crystal capacitor, integrated circuit, etc.,] were separated into three types, viz., materials which can be (a) reused (b) recycled and (c) disposed, depending on their properties and quantities Analysis of e-waste components i) Incineration: The separated e-waste constituents viz., transistor, integrated circuit, crystal capacitor, light emitting diode, diode and PCB were subjected to incineration for about 10 minutes using a Bunsen burner to find out the inflammable nature [to get heat energy] and to reduce the quantity of e-waste from land filling ii) Qualitative analysis: The standard procedure for the inorganic qualitative analysis was carried out for the components [metal parts alone] and for the ash left after the incineration process 12. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Many electronic articles [television, radio, computer, key board, cell phone, electronic watch, ph meter, potentiometer and conductometer, etc.,] which were considered as waste, were brought to use after minor repair / changing the components. The result indicates that the inflammable nature of the constituents during incineration [Table -1]. It also indicates the considerable reduction in weight of the e-waste components after incineration [Table-2]. The inflammable components can be used for heating with caution. The e-waste parts of articles / ash obtained after incineration of them were found to contain many metals [Table-3] Table-1: The results of incineration of hardware constituents S. Colour of the Colour of the Constituent Inflammable No. flame Residue 1 Ceramic disc capacitor Non-inflammable Light Green Light Brown 2 Diode Partially inflammable nature Yellow Black 3 Light Emitting Diode (Green, Red, White) Inflammable Yellow White 4 Integrated Chip Inflammable Green (with suffocations) White 5 Electrolytic Capacitor Plastic & rubber parts Yellow (with, inflammable white fumes) Black 6 Transistor Inflammable Light Yellow Black 7 Capacitor Partially inflammable Yellow Black Vol 3, Issue 5,

4 Table-2: Weight reduction data for the E-Waste constituents by Incineration S. No. Constituents Initial Percentage of Final Weight (g) Weight (g) reduced weight 1 Transistor Integrated Circuit Condenser Light Emitting Diode Diode Printed Circuit Board Table-3: Qualitative analysis of metallic parts / ash [after incineration] S. No. Name of the article Metals Present 1 Transistor Lead,Tellurium,Copper Molybdenum, Aluminium & Cobalt 2 Potentiometer Lead, Selenium, Copper, Antimony, Thallium & Cobalt 3 Printed Circuit Board Lead, Tellurium, Copper & Aluminium 4 Integrated Circuit Lead, Tellurium, Copper, Aluminium & Cobalt 5 LED Lead, Tellurium, Copper & Aluminium 6 Diode Lead, Selenium, Cadmium, Aluminium & Zinc 7 Resister Lead, Tellurium,Copper, Antimony & Zinc 8 Fuse Tube Lead, Tellurium, Copper, Aluminium & Cobalt 9 CD & DVD Lead,Tellurium, Molybdenum & Nickel 10 Condenser Lead, Tellurium, Copper, Aluminium & Cobalt 11 Capacitor Lead, Copper & Aluminium CONCLUSION Awareness has to be created among the people to follow the three Rs -viz, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle for the electronic articles. The domestic or laboratory electronic waste materials should be: Reused after repair or replacing components.they can also be used in craft work for making utility articles like pen stand, flower vase, etc., high. Recycling by extracting the metals / plastic components present in them, if the quantity is Disposed as ash after incineration in order to minimize the degree of pollution of soil, water and air. The analysis and treatment of e-waste materials not only depend on the external components but also on the internal components [physical & chemical properties] and the technology with which the equipment works. Vol 3, Issue 5,

5 It is suggested that the Governments should encourage the production of electronic articles with Biodegradable Components (GREEN TECHNOLOGY) The qualitative analysis of a few e-waste components reveal the presence of plastic / other organic polymers in addition to the metals like lead, copper, aluminium, nickel, cadmium, chromium, selenium, iron etc., A few electronic components were found to be suitable for reuse (resistors, transistors etc.,) Some metals can be separated by conventional methods and extracted. The United Nation Environment Programme study emphasizes that e-waste is a global problem with worldwide health and environmental consequences. Although there is legislation that encourages recycling of e-waste in some part of the world, the UN notes that it is not sufficient. We see the need for stronger awareness and action to solve the e-waste problem, says Guido Sonnemann, Program Officer for United Nations Environment Programme. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The Authors thank the Principal of Govt. Arts College, Ariyalur and the Principals and Managements of Bishop Heber College (Autonomous) & St. Joseph s College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India for encouragement and support. REFERENCES 1. Yla-Mella J, Pongracz E, Keiski R. Recovery of WEEE in Finland. Proceedings of the Waste Minimization and Resources Use Optimization Conf, Oulu, 2004; Fernanda A, Luisa B, Anna C, Isabella L. Cathode ray tube glass recycling: an example of clean technology. Journal of Waste Management and Research, 2005; 23: Antrekowitsch H, Potesser M, Spruzina W, Prior F. Metallurgical recycling of electronic scrap. The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS), 2006; Balakrishnan RB, Anand KP, Chiya AB. Electrical and electronic waste: a global environmental problem. Journal of Waste Management and Research, 2007; 25: Wong M H, Wu, Deng SC, Yu WJ, Luo XZ, Leung Q. Export of toxic chemicals - A review of the case of uncontrolled electronic-waste recycling. Environmental Pollution, 2007; 149(2): Yoheeswaran E. E-waste management in India. Global Research Analysis, 2013; 2(4): Vol 3, Issue 5,

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