What devices or components contain focus materials?

Q.   What devices or components contain Focus Materials, and do they have to be treated as a Focus Material?

Focus Materials can be found in many different devices and accessories.  For example, not only does a laptop contain focus materials, you also need to consider peripheral items such as the keyboard, mouse, external speakers, and power supply.  For help identifying devices that contain Focus Materials, view this R2 Guidance and Knowledge Base article:  EXAMPLES OF COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF SELECT ELECTRONIC DEVICES

Focus Materials, and equipment or components that contain a Focus Material, must be treated as an R2 Controlled Stream until the items have been evaluated according to Core Requirement 6 (b) (2):

 All equipment, components, and materials shall be managed as an R2 Controlled Stream that requires further processing in accordance with the R2 requirements, unless it:

(a) Has been processed and categorized by another certified R2 Facility, in which case the provided REC categorization can be recognized, or
(b) Has been processed and categorized by a non-R2 facility and the R2 Facility has implemented a documented evaluation and sampling process to verify the categorization, or
(c) Can be demonstrated with appropriate test and/or verification records to be sanitized and functional, or
(c) No longer meets the definition of an R2 Controlled Stream.

Learn more about R2 Controlled Streams in this R2 Guidance and Knowledge Base article:  R2 CONTROLLED STREAMS

Q.   How are Focus Materials defined in the R2 Standard?

The definition of “Focus Materials” is found in the DEFINITIONS section of the R2 Standard. It states:

“Focus Materials”, also referred to as “FMs”, are materials in electronic equipment that warrant greater care during recycling, refurbishing, materials recovery, energy recovery, incineration, and/or disposal due to their toxicity or other potential adverse health and safety impacts on workers, the public and the environment if the materials are managed without appropriate safeguards.

A table with additional information about each Focus Material and when tracking the Focus Material in the recycling chain may stop, is included with the Focus Material definition.   To view the table, refer to the DEFINITIONS section of the R2v3 Standard.

Q.   Since alkaline batteries are excluded from the Focus Materials battery definition, what are the requirements for managing alkaline batteries under R2v3?

Under Core Requirement 8.(c), the R2 Facility is required to manage all non-focus materials in accordance with the Core Requirement 2. Hierarchy of Responsible Management Strategies, as well as in full legal compliance.  As a result, while alkaline batteries do not require downstream vendor qualification and tracking, they still need to be managed in accordance with the hierarchy and meet all applicable legal requirements.

Q.   Why does the Focus Materials definition include all circuit boards, even those that are lead-free?

When assessing which materials should be classified as a Focus Material, consideration was given to both the potential hazards associated with the material itself, as well as the risks associated with processing the material.  For circuit boards, it was determined that the additional Focus Material controls would be beneficial to ensure that the boards are processed only through legal, safe, and permitted operations.

Q:    Should flat panel TVs and monitors be considered mercury-containing devices?

Yes, until it is known otherwise, all flat panel displays should be treated as mercury containing, which is a Focus Material.   Although it’s not immediately obvious, many flat panels contain mercury.  In LCD displays the screens are illuminated by small fluorescent tubes called CCFL bulbs, and these bulbs contain a small amount of mercury vapor.   Newer displays tend to use LEDs or OLEDs to illuminate the screen. These do not contain mercury, but without disassembling the display or carefully checking model numbers for each device, it can be challenging for an R2 facility to determine which illumination method is being used and thus whether it is a mercury-containing device.

Facilities that disassemble flat panels note that the LCD display screens (containing mercury) generally have two wires (usually at the top and bottom of each LCD display) while LED screens generally have a single wire that has a square plug to connect to the rest of the monitor.  But, even knowing which displays contain the mercury bulbs, before processing proper procedures and safety protocols must be in place for safely removing, storing and transporting the bulbs to prevent any breakage or release.

If an R2 facility has located a qualified downstream vendor that tests and refurbishes flat panels for resale, the simplest solution is to send all flat panels to this vendor for testing. They can easily determine if the device uses CCFL bulbs or LEDs for illumination, and can remove mercury-containing CCFL bulbs from any devices that fail testing.  When qualifying a downstream vendor for testing and processing flat panels, either use an R2v3-certified vendor or follow the requirements in Appendix A(8) to verify the downstream information to end of life or the first R2v3 Certified facility, for both circuit boards and mercury bulbs.