Present status of E-waste management in Australia and potential ways for improvement integrating the concept of reverse logistics, material flow analysis (MFA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) PRESENTED BY MD TASBIRUL ISLAM PH.D. STUDENT, SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING SUPERVISOR: DR. NAZMUL HUDA 18 July 2018 Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) / Electronic waste (E-waste) E-waste is a term used to cover items of all types of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and its part that have been discarded by the owner as waste without intention of re-use [1]. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 2 1
Global E-waste generation Source: Baldé, C.P., Forti V., Gray, V., Kuehr, R., Stegmann,P. : The Global E-waste Monitor 2017, United Nations University (UNU), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) & International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), Bonn/Geneva/Vienna. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 3 Why E-waste is an important waste stream? It contains both toxic elements such as mercury, cadmium, chromium, lead, and polychlorinated biphenyl etc. E-waste is also considered as a valuable source of secondary raw materials, like Gold, Copper, silver, Platinum, Palladium etc. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 4 2
Text-mining based bibliometric analysis of e-waste research field Total 2463 documents were analysed from Web of Science database. Citenetexplorer, HistCite TM, R-bibliometric package and VosViewer are the key analysis tools used in this research. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 5 Research performance and collaboration SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 6 3
Research article clustering based on co-citation network SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 7 Emerging topics in E-waste research and projected area for investigation Life-cycle Assessment: Assessing potential environmental impact on landfilling and potential management alternatives Material flow Analysis (MFA): Method to identifies actual and hidden flow of waste and estimate total generation and supports decision making to find alternatives to management Reverse logistics (RL): Collection and recovery of e-waste Scientific landscape of E-waste research SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 8 4
Projected trend of e-waste research SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 9 Major conclusions from bibliometric analysis SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 10 5
Research output 1 Title: A bibliometric analysis of electronic waste (E-waste)/waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) research during 1993-2017 and exploring future trends Journal: Journal of Environmental Management Impact Factor: 4.005 Status: Under review SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 11 E-waste generation in Australia In 2014, total, 468 metric kilotonnes of E-waste generated in Australia. Per capita E-waste generation reached 20.1 kg in Australia, and in USA 22.1 kg. Australia is one of the highest per capita E-waste generating nations [3]. Source: Where next on e-waste in Australia? Artem Golev et al., Waste Management, (2016). 58, pp: 348-358 SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 12 6
Charateristics of E-waste management system In Australia At present, only waste computer and televisions are considered as e-waste under the National Computer and Television Recycling Scheme (NTCRS). Industry-funded system, meaning manufacturers and importers fund the collection and recycling operation. There are four co-regulatory agreements (CRAs) that administer the system. Department of Environment and Department of Immigration and border protection are the two government bodies that ensure compliance of the scheme. There are 32 recyclers actively participating the system. There are 1800 collection points. Approximately, one collection point for 12,777 residents. Heavily dependent on first stage recycling - manual dismantling and low technology material recovery process for aluminium, copper and steel inside Australia. Major portion of the valuable materials goes for overseas recycling (e.g. mainly to China, Japan and South Korea) Note that E-waste management system in Australia is a combined approach adapted in Switzerland, Japan and the EU WEEE Directives. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 13 Roles and responsibilities in NTCRS SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 14 7
Challenges The National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme (NTCRS) under the Australian Government s Product Stewardship Act 2011 recognizes computer and television as the two important products. Q: What about other products, i.e. small and large household items and others? Q: Does current management system consider lack of data availability for future planning and development? An estimated total of 122 kilotons (kt) of televisions and computers reached end-of-life in Australia in 2014 15, out of which around 43 kt were recycled (35%) under this scheme. Q: Where does the rest of the amount of e-waste goes? Q: What other alternative approaches can be initiated and by which technology? Australian government aims to increase the rate of recycling of televisions and computers from an estimated 17% in 2010 11 to 80% by 2021 22. Q: Are the actors (i.e. customers, local councils, recyclers) in the entire reverse supply chain active to achieve such target? The Australian Government reports that, to date, over 1,800 collection services have been made available to consumers. Q: Are the locations of the collection centres and/or transfer station optimized? SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 15 Major concerned areas and research needs Sustainable E-waste management in Australia Are the locations of the collection centres and/or transfer station optimized? Reverse logistics Flow of materials and management alternatives What about other products, i.e. small and large household items? Where does the rest of the amount of e-waste goes? What other alternative approaches can be initiated and by which technology? Are the actors (i.e. customer, local government councils, recyclers) in the entire reverse supply chain active to achieve such target? Actor analysis Product inventory management system Does current management system consider lack of data availability for future planning and development? SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 16 8
Reverse logistics Charity bins Customers Local government Clean-up collection Event collection Permanent drop-off points Problem waste collection Dismantling and sorting Retailer take back Recyclers System boundary: 38 Sydney metro councils Main methodology: Simulation modelling and Mixed integer-linear programming Target objective: optimized location for transfer station and dismantling and sorting and/or recycling facilities with minimum cost SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 17 Actor analysis Customer E-waste awareness survey is currently running. Total 223 responses received. Example: typical lifespan of the E-waste items. Council level data collection in E-waste generation and barriers in E-waste management is currently going on. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 18 9
Flow of materials and management alternatives Integrated Material flow analysis (MFA) and Life-cycle assessment (LCA) model will be developed to understand the flow of materials and to assess environmental benefits and burdens. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 19 How MFA is connected with e-waste generation estimation? A review has been submitted analysing 40 articles on MFA at 2nd International Research Conference on Sustainable Energy, Engineering, Materials and Environment (SEEME), Polytechnic School of Mieres, University of Oviedo, Spain, 25-27 July 2018. Major methods used by the researchers are Input-output, time series MFA, substance flow analysis (SFA) (for material level analysis) etc. Data collection 1. Fieldwork for individual quantitative data from recyclers, collectors and local municipalities 2. Questionnaire survey 3. Statistical data from Government reports 4. Literature review SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 20 10
1 st step in combined MFA and LCA model E-waste generation estimation It is assumed that for small IT and consumer electronics items, the sales growth is expanding in Australia. UNU KEY DESCRIPTION EEE CATEGORY UNDER EU-6 EEE CATEGORY UNDER EU-10 114 Microwaves (incl. combined, excl. grills) Small equipment Large household appliances 201 Other small household equipment (e.g. small ventilators, irons, clocks, adapters) Small equipment Small household appliances 202 Equipment for food preparation (e.g. toaster, grills, food processing, frying pans) Small equipment Small household appliances 203 Small household equipment for hot water preparation (e.g. coffee, tea, water Small equipment Small household appliances cookers) 204 Vacuum Cleaners (excl. professional) Small equipment Small household appliances 205 Personal Care equipment (e.g. toothbrushes, hairdryers, razors) Small equipment Small household appliances 301 Small IT equipment (e.g. routers, mice, keyboards, external drives & accessories) Small IT IT and telecommunications equipment 302 Desktop PCs (excl. monitors, accessories) Small IT IT and telecommunications equipment 304 Printers (e.g. scanners, multi -functionals, faxes) Small IT IT and telecommunications equipment 305 Telecommunication equipment (e.g. cordless phones, answering machines) Small IT IT and telecommunications equipment 306 Mobile Phones (incl. smartphones, pagers) Small IT IT and telecommunications equipment 401 Small Consumer Electronics (e.g. headphones, remote controls) Small equipment Consumer equipment 402 Portable Audio & Video (e.g. MP3, e-readers, car navigation) Small equipment Consumer equipment 403 Music Instruments, Radio, Hi-Fi (incl. audio sets) Small equipment Consumer equipment 404 Video (e.g. Video recorders, DVD, Blue Ray, set-top boxes) and projectors Small equipment Consumer equipment 405 Speakers Small equipment Consumer equipment 406 Cameras (e.g. camcorders, photo & digital still cameras) Small equipment Consumer equipment 506 Household Luminaires (incl. household incandescent fittings & household LED Small equipment Lighting equipment luminaires) 507 Professional Luminaires (offices, public space, industry) Small equipment Lighting equipment 601 Household Tools (e.g. drills, saws, high pressure cleaners, lawn mowers) Small equipment Electrical and electronic tools 701 Toys (e.g. car racing sets, electric trains, music toys, biking computers, drones) Small equipment Toys 702 Game Consoles Small IT Toys 801 Household medical equipment (e.g. thermometers, blood pressure meters) Small equipment Medical devices 901 Household Monitoring & Control equipment (alarm, heat, smoke, excl. screens) Small equipment Monitoring and control instruments SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 21 Method and data sources for estimation Major method will be used Consumption and use and time-step method. Data collection 1. Fieldwork for individual quantitative data from recyclers, collectors and local municipalities etc. 2. From UNCOMTRADE database with product specific HS-CODE retrieving sales data. 3. Questionnaire survey 4. Statistical data from Government reports 5. Literature review STAN 2 software for MFA to identify routes and distribution of the flows both at regional level (NSW state). SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 22 11
LCA modelling International Reference Life Cycle Data System (ILCD) method/ ReCiPe Two types of LCA model will be developed 1. NTCRS-based collection and recovery system Computer and television 1. Non-NTCRS collection and recovery system Small IT and consumer equipment (except computer and accessories) Data sources and application software: Ecoinvent and Australian System Process dataset (AusLCI) SimaPro software version 8.5 will be used. SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 23 Product inventory management system SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 24 12
Research output 2 Title: Reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)/E-waste: A comprehensive literature review Journal: Resource Conservation and Recycling Impact Factor: 5.120 Status: Published SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 25 Research output 3 Title: Characteristics of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment/ E-waste related reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain research (1999 2017) Journal: Journal of Cleaner Production Impact Factor: 5.651 Status: Revised manuscript under preparation SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 26 13
Other published works Research output 4 Title: A comprehensive review of state-of-the-art concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies: Current status and research trends Journal: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews Impact Factor: 8.050 Status: Published SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 27 Ongoing research activities E-waste public awareness survey in Australia NSW local government perspectives for sustainable E-waste management system E-waste generation estimation for Australia Material stock and value proposition of critical and rare earth materials from waste mobile phone, laptop and personal computer Elsevier UK, Book chapter: Integrated sustainable E-waste management system in Australia in the HANDBOOK OF ELECTRONIC WASTE MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICES. Collaboration with Centre for Studies in Science Policy, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, India SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 28 14
Peer reviewed conference papers Bibliometric analysis of concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies To be presented in the Energy Systems Conference 2018, 19-20 June 2018 QEII Centre, Westminster, London, UK. Combined Material flow analysis (MFA) and Life cycle assessment (LCA) tools for E-waste management system: Methodological development and case studies To be presented in the 2nd International Research Conference on Sustainable Energy, Engineering, Materials and Environment (SEEME), Oviedo, Spain with the support of PGRF, Round 2 (July/August 2018) Application of Material flow analysis (MFA) in E-waste management To be presented in the 2nd International Research Conference on Sustainable Energy, Engineering, Materials and Environment (SEEME), Oviedo, Spain with the support of PGRF, Round 2 (July/August 2018) Comparison of Swiss and Australian E-waste Management system To be presented in the ICESD 2018: International Conference on Environment and Sustainable Development, Zurich, Switzerland, with the support of PGRF, Round 2 (July/August 2018) Regional approach of E-waste management: lesson learned and case study of NSW. To be presented in the International conference on Energy, Ecology and Environment/Electric and Intelligent Vehicles (ICEEE2018/ICEIV2018), at Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne (21-25 Nov. 2018) with the support of School of Engineering HDR fund SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 29 Research collaborations SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 30 15
References [1] StEP Initiative. One Global Definition of E-Waste; StEP Initiative: Bonn, Germany, 2014 [2] Balde, K.; Wang, F.; Huisman, J.; Kuehr, R. The Global E-Waste Monitor; United Nations University: Bonn, Germany, 2015. [3] Where next on e-waste in Australia? Artem Golev et al., Waste Management, (2016). 58, pp: 348-358 SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 31 Thank you. Any Questions or suggestion? SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING 32 16