An analysis of the composition and metal contamination of plastics from waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE)

Stenvall, Erik; Tostar, Sandra; Boldizar, Antal; Foreman, Mark; Möller, Kenneth

doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2012.12.022

Cited by 101 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…In general, ABS/PP/PS plus "other" components is regarded as a mechanically separable and hence recyclable mix. As will be discussed further in the Chapter relating to sorting technologies, separating the styrenic polymers (ABS and PS) from the other polyolefin plastic fractions is seen as relatively routine, the biggest challenge for the recycling technology being the ability to separate the styrenics (Stenvall et al 2013). The biggest general barrier to the recyclability of all plastic fractions is the potential for hazardous substances, as described in the following section.…”

Section: Overall MIX Of Plastics In Collected Weeementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Numerous sources (including Wäger et al 2010, Stenvall et al 2013 highlight hazardous substances as being the biggest inhibitor of the recyclability of WEEE plastics. The RoHS directive establishes which hazardous substances are in focus for WEEE and plastics -four heavy metals and two types of brominated flame retardants.…”

Section: Hazardous Substances In Weee Plasticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Certain products and product groups, notably TVs and monitors but also other products in the "small domestic" category, appear to give the most problematic plastic fractions. Stenvall et al (2013) give a further detailed analysis of WEEE plastics on the market that is highly relevant to this study. They analysed WEEE plastics samples from some of the most significant WEEE plastics recycling sites in Scandinavia, notably the Stena Technoworld facility in Halmstad, Sweden.…”

Section: Few Problems For Groups 1 and 2 (Household Items)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Plastic value chains

Baxter¹,

Wahlström²,

Castell-Rüdenhausen³

et al. 2014

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Section: Overall MIX Of Plastics In Collected Weeementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hazardous Substances In Weee Plasticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Few Problems For Groups 1 and 2 (Household Items)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Plastic value chains

Baxter¹,

Wahlström²,

Castell-Rüdenhausen³

et al. 2014

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“…These additives also include other flame retardants and plasticizers, pigments, stabilizers, and reinforcement components, which are composed of heavy metals or metal compounds (Dimitrakakis et al, 2009;Li and Shi, 2011;Nakashima et al, 2012;Rochman et al, 2013). In some products, the contents of these dangerous additives are high or extremely high (Morf et al, 2007;Dimitrakakis et al, 2009;Stenvall et al, 2013 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contamination and risk of heavy metals in soils and sediments from a typical plastic waste recycling area in North China

Tang

Zhang

Huang

et al. 2015

Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety

140

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a b s t r a c tPlastic wastes are increasingly being recycled in many countries. However, available information on the metals released into the environment during recycling processes is rare. In this study, the contamination features and risks of eight heavy metals in soils and sediments were investigated in Wen'an, a typical plastic recycling area in North China. The surface soils and sediments have suffered from moderate to high metal pollution and in particular, high Cd and Hg pollution. The mean concentrations of Cd and Hg were 0.355 and 0.408 mg kg À 1 , respectively, in the soils and 1.53 and 2.10 mg kg À 1 , respectively, in the sediments. The findings suggested that there is considerable to high potential ecological risks in more than half of the soils and high potential ecological risk in almost all sediments. Although the health risk levels from exposure to soil metals were acceptable for adults, the non-carcinogenic risks to local children exceeded the acceptable level. Source assessment indicated that heavy metals in soils and sediments were mainly derived from inputs from poorly controlled plastic waste recycling operations in this area. The results suggested that the risks associated with heavy metal pollution from plastic waste recycling should be of great concern.

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“…Questions are arising regarding the targeted solution to the recovery of plastic portion of waste, as it represents about 20-30% of the waste content and it continues to grow [3]. Mechanical recycling of plastic fragments and its reintroduction into production processes is, in many cases, an inefficient approach from economic and qualitative terms.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%