LEACHING OF LEAD FROM DISCARDED NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS USING THE SCALE-UP TCLP AND OTHER STANDARD LEACHING TESTS

Jang, Yong-Chul; Townsend, Timothy G

doi:2006.11.1.14

Environmental Engineering Research 2006;11(1): 14-27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4491/eer.2006.11.1.014

LEACHING OF LEAD FROM DISCARDED NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS USING THE SCALE-UP TCLP AND OTHER STANDARD LEACHING TESTS

Yong-Chul Jang¹^†, and Timothy G Townsend²

¹Department of Environmental Engineering, Chungnam National University, 220 Gung-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-764, South Korea
²Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences, University of Florida, P.O. BOX 1 16450, USA

Corresponding Author: Yong-Chul Jang ,Tel: +82-42-821-6674, Fax: +82-42-822-5610, Email: gogalor@cnu.ac.kr

Received: September 7, 2005; Accepted: January 7, 2006.

ABSTRACT

The proper management of discarded electronic devices (often called electronic-waste) is an emerging issue for solid waste professionals throughout the world because of the large growth of the waste stream, and the content of toxic metals in them, most notably heavy metals such as lead. Notebook computers are becoming one of the major components of discarded computer devices and will continue to increase in the waste stream in the future. While the computers hold greal promise for recycling, a substantial amount of this waste is often disposed in municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. The toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) is commonly used to simulate worse case leaching conditions where a potentially hazardous waste is assumed to be disposed along with municipal solid waste in a landfill with actively decomposing materials overlying an aquifer. The objective of this study was to examine leaching potential of lead from discarded notebook computers using the scale-up TCLP, other standard leaching tests such as California waste extraction test (Cal WET), and the synthetic precipitation leaching procedure (SPLP) and actual landfill leachates as leaching solution. The scale-up TCLP is a modified TCLP (where the device was disassembled and leached in or near entirety) to meet the intent of the TCLP. The results showed that the scale-up TCLP resulted in relatively high lead found in the leachate with an average of 23.3 mg/L. The average level was less than those by the standard TCLP and WET (37.0 mg/L and 86.0 mg/L. respectively), but much greater than those by the SPLP and the extractions with the landfill leachates (0.55 mg/L and 1.47 mg/L, respectively). The pH of the leaching solution and the ability of the organic acids in the TCLP and WET to complex with the lead were identified as major factors that controlled the amount of lead leached from notebook computers. Based on the results obtained by a number of leaching tests in this study, notebook computers may present a potential leaching risk to the environment and human health upon land disposal. However, further investigation is still needed to assess the true risk posed by the land disposal of discarded notebook computers.