SPOTLIGHT Reuse & Recycling
Irish fi rm shows how to recycle hazardous electronics parts
How do you go about recycling a growing electronic waste stream which is complex, contains fractions that are valuable and others that are hazardous? An Irish start-up, its technology integrator and ABB have been working together on a sophisticated solution
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rish technology start-up FPD Recycling has taken the fi rst major step in tackling the waste generated by an estimated nine million computer and TV fl at panel displays (FPDs) sold every year in the UK. It installed the country’s fi rst fully- automated, robotic system of its kind for recycling this high-value but extremely hazardous waste. The patented artifi cial intelligence (AI) based system, which currently integrates two ABB robots, will be able to process up to 100 screens or 200 laptops an hour, when running at full capacity. By mid- April, the fi rst system was installed at electronics-recycling specialist Areera in Elland, West Yorkshire, and a further three machines, incorporating a total of six robots, were being prepared for installation on the same site. This installation is signifi cant on several levels, but two reasons stand out, says Paudy O’Brien, CEO of FPD Recycling: “Waste electronics is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world, but it is also the most hazardous,” he said, adding that traditional alternatives are rapidly proving untenable. Until now, those alternatives have included exports to countries such as China, and Asian or African destinations. But some four years ago, China’s National Sword initiative put a stop to dumping hard-to-recycle waste on its territories. Other countries are following suit.
Recovering and recycling In the case of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), such strategies are not only unethical but also wasteful of high-value resources that could be recovered and reused if processed correctly. Furthermore, using recovered secondary materials provides a more resource-effi cient alternative to using virgin minerals and metals, reducing the energy and CO2
emissions associated with extraction and processing. 42 November 2021 | Automation
automationmagazine.co.uk
FPD PRO used in dismantling waste electronics in televison sets and various displays
Where fl at panel display WEEE is not exported, it can be shredded, which according to O’Brien yields very little value: “There is virtually no market for co-mingled metal, plastics and glass. Similarly, manual disassembly can expose operatives to compounds of mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium and other hazardous chemicals. Each screen may contain only small amounts of these substances, but when you’re working on hundreds of screens every hour, this can be harmful.”
Semi-automatic systems exist, he adds, but do no more than detach the
screen, leaving the bulk of the assembly – including the hazardous components – untouched. Nor are the risks of human exposure completely eliminated in a semi- automatic setting. The Areera installation’s signifi cance for the UK is not lost on O’Brien: “In a European and broader international context, the UK has led the way in this fi eld of environmental regulation.” The UK was quick to implement the EU’s WEEE Directive in the shape of its 2006 regulation; took it further with the 2013 legislation that replaced it; and added an extension in 2019.
Left and right:
FPD PRO in construction and with a container
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