Hi, Brian,
no, I have never heard of critical blood lead levels in solderers, but
several statements, that this is no problem. Hasn't there been a study on
this topic in the US discussed in this forum several months ago? In my
e-mail I just wrote about the workers at lead smelters, which are close or
even above coming blood lead level thresholds. I also do not know, if there
are any health defects documented related to raised blood lead levels at
lead smelters.
Karsten
----- Original Message -----
From: "Brian Ellis" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, February 04, 2002 12:37 PM
Subject: Re: [LF] recycling lead
> Karsten
>
> 1. Have blood lead levels in solderers been measured and are they
> significantly higher than the general populace? (The last figures I saw
> on this were derived during the days of tetraethyl lead in petrol and
> there was no significant difference: today, as the background levels
> have diminished, the difference may be more measurable.)
>
> 2. Most of the solder, and especially the lead, can be recovered from
> PCB assmblies by a violent liquid levelling of the assemblies
> ***before*** they are chopped up. The alloy thus gained is about 50/50
> (some tin but little lead reamins in the IMC layer). This recovered
> solder is adequate for some mechanical soldering applications without
> further purification but it can, of course, be purified for recycling in
> our industry. The copper smelters are also happy as they have little
> lead in their recovered bronze, although they still have the tin, if
> they want pure copper.
>
> Brian
>
> Karsten Schischke wrote:
> >
> > Dear Harvey,
> > no discussion about batteries - there is a well established lead
recycling
> > with a nearly perfectly closed loop (that's why no one in Europe
discusses a
> > lead ban for acid-batteries).
> > But PCB / electronics scrap contains usually >> 5% copper and << 5% lead
> > (references (1), (2), (3) for these figures below), prices at LME on
Friday
> > have been: 1,587 US$/t for copper and 486 US$/t for lead. Keeping this
in
> > mind: What do you think where the majority of electronics scrap is going
to
> > now and in the future, to a lead smelter or a copper smelter? I don't
know,
> > but I guess it will be the copper smelter (where in addition the total
> > recycling rates will be higher due to the higher copper content, and the
> > coming WEEE directive will set recycling percentages independent of the
> > metal recycled). For Europe it's even different today: according to the
EU
> > the majority isn't neither going to a lead smelter nor to a copper
smelter
> > but to landfills and waste incinerators.
> >
> > By the way, Harvey, did you get some more details referring to my ECS
> > questions - unfortunately I tried several times to contact Jim Taggart
by
> > e-mail, but didn't get any reply.
> >
> > I would like to come up with another "leadfree"-argument (not because
I'm a
> >
"leadfree-environmentalist-lobbying-and-fighting-for-getting-money-for-leadf
> > ree-research", but as you stress the cons of the ban I would like to
stress
> > the other side of the medal to keep this forum a bit better balanced):
Up to
> > know workers at lead smelters even with high ESH requirements have
> > significantly raised blood lead levels (knowing this from a copper
smelter
> > who also processes secondary lead) - this problem will be solved at
least
> > here in Germany by even stricter protection requirements, but I'm sure
> > throughout the world there is a lot of primary or secondary lead
processed
> > under much less strict ESH legislation and supervision.
> >
> > references: (1) H. Griese, O. Deubzer, J. Müller, L. Stobbe: Applied
> > EcoDesign - Product Characterization by Sustainability Indices, Proc.
> > Tutorial EcoDesign 2001 (2nd International Symposium on Environmentally
> > Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing), Tokyo/Japan, December 12 -
15,
> > 2001; (2) S. Kreibe, J. Wagner, W. Rommel: Verwertung und Beseitigung
von
> > Leiterplattenschrott, Bayerisches Institut für Abfallforschung - Texte
Nr.
> > 7, S. 1-5; (3) L. Oiva,W. Oppermann, A. Middendorf, K.-H. Zuber, I.
Stobbe:
> > Case study on the environmental impacts of a mobile phone, Electronics
Goes
> > Green 2000+, Berlin, September 11-13, 2000)
> >
> > Best regards
> > Karsten Schischke
> >
> > ...............................................................
> > Fraunhofer IZM
> > Karsten Schischke
> > Dept. Environmental Engineering
> > Gustav-Meyer-Allee 25
> > 13355 Berlin
> > Germany
> > [log in to unmask]
> > http://www.izm.fraunhofer.de
> > ...............................................................
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Sunday, February 03, 2002 11:13 PM
> > Subject: [LF] recycling lead--a better answer to Karsten
> >
> > > Karsten
> > > "Recycling lead is not that easy.", you wrote. I disagree, recycling
lead
> > is
> > > easy. The acid-acid battery industry smelts for lead with nearly 100%
> > > recovery every day (reference Metaleurop, RSR Corp, Exide, and
others).
> > >
> > > Printed circuit boards are shredded by ECS Refining and many others.
They
> > > are then like a lead-bearing ore. Then a primary/secondary LEAD
smelter
> > like
> > > Doe Run In Missouri can recover well over 99% of lead. But send it to
a
> > > COPPER smelter like Noranda or Union Miniere and you will only get 50%
of
> > the
> > > lead. All smelters today have safeguards, including high enough
> > temperatures
> > > to avoid release of dioxins and furanes, according to many industry
> > sources.
> > > In the U.S. they report to agencies like OSHA and EPA.
> > >
> > > What isn't easy is coming up with the money to subsidize disassembly
of
> > the
> > > equipment boxes, shred the boards, smelt for lead which sells for less
> > than
> > > $1/kg. Unless the supply chain is short and the source is
concentrated,
> > lead
> > > is an economic drug on the market.
> > >
> > > By the way, lead oxide slag from copper smelters mixed with cement for
> > > roadbeds passes most leach tests. I'd like to see proof that any life
> > form
> > > has ever been truly damaged by such lead. But OK, we'll go along with
the
> > > Greens on that one. Just stop the WEEE lead-free solder madness.
> > >
> > > An example of constructive research into alternative approaches is the
> > > Cookson-Cambridge-EA Technology to remove the solder chemically(ref
Alan
> > Rae)
> > > before further processing. Lead-free solder will be so very expensive
to
> > > implement; there are better, more environmentally friendly choices.
> > (Please
> > > see Karl Seelig's article in current EP&P, "Lead-Free is not a
Given".)
> > >
> > > Harvey Miller
> > >
> >
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