|
|
For sustainable economic growth, it is essential to develop and provide products with awareness of the global environment.
For this purpose, we have been operating an environment management system conforming to ISO 14001 and actively addressing to reduce or prohibit substance of concern to be contained in the products based on the environmental standards such as the RoHS Directive and the ELV Directive as well as customers' requests.
Our wires and cables manufactured after 1 January 2015 meet next RoHS 2 directive added to 4 kind of phthalates (DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP)
|
|
1. RoHS Directive |
|
The Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive came into effects in February 2003 by the European Union (EU) to restrict
hazardous substances used in electronic and electric appliances.
According to the Directive, from 1 July 2006 and onward in the EU countries, it has been made impossible to market electronic and electric appliances that contain substances prohibited by the RoHS Directive. |
|
2. ELV Directive |
|
The End-of-Life Vehicle Directive, aiming to reduce impacts of end-of-life vehicles to the environment, was passed in May 2000 by the European Union (EU) and came into effects on 21 October 2000.
The Directive is intended to promote recycling of parts in vehicles and control containment of hazardous substances in parts.
It has been mandatory for vehicle manufacturers to conform to the applicable regulations concerning new vehicles sold from 1 July 2003 onward. |
|
3. Maximum Allowable Value for Containment-prohibited Substances |
|
The containment-prohibited substances of the ELV Directive are four substances: lead, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, and mercury.
Besides the above four substances, The RoHS Directive adds specific bromine flame-retardants and four specific phthlates
Some uses are exempted; however, in addition to intentional use, it is also prohibited for the wires to contain more than the standard value.
The regulation numerical standards for the containmentprohibited substances required by the RoHS Directive and the ELV Directive are as follows (as of Jan. 2016). |
|
MATERIAL |
MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE VALUE |
RoHS DIRECTIVE |
ELV DIRECTIVE |
LEAD (Pb) |
1,000 |
1,000 |
MERCURY (Hg) |
1,000 |
1,000 |
CADMIUM (Cd) |
100 |
100 |
HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM (Cr6+) |
1,000 |
1,000 |
POLY BROMINATED BIPHENYL (PBB) |
1,000 |
- |
POLY BROMINATED
DIPHENYL ETHER (PBDE) |
1,000 |
- |
Phthalates (effective on July 2019)
DEHP,BBP,DBP,DIBP |
1,000 |
- |
|
|
|
Note 1) |
The maximum allowable value is a value per homogeneous material (a material that can not be mechanically decomposed into different materials). |
|
|
■Supplement: Measurement method for hazardous substances
The actual measurement evaluations of controlled substances in the ELV Directive and the RoHS Directive (which includes the controls on the specific brominated substances such as PBB and PBDE) include the following representative methods. |
|
ITEM |
ENERGY DISPERSIVE
X-RAY FLUORESCENSE SPECTROMETRY |
INDUCTIVITY COUPLED PLASMA
ATOMIC EMISSION SPECTROMETRY (ICP) |
DIPHENYLCARBAZIDE ABSORPTION SPECTROPHOTOMETRY |
GAS CHROMATOGRAPH
MASS SPECTROMETRY |
SUBJECT OF
ANALYSIS |
Cd, Pb, Hg, total Cr, total Br |
Cd, Pb, Hg |
Cr6+ |
PBB, PBDE, Phthalate |
DETECTION LIMIT |
50 ppm |
10 ppm |
2 ppm |
PBB,PBDE:5ppm
Phthalate:30ppm |
USE |
Qualitative screening analysis |
Quantitative precision analysis |
REMARKS |
Non-destructive inspection possible, simple, no pretreatment required |
Pretreatment required, time-consuming |
Pretreatment required, time-consuming |
Extraction with soxlet tube, time-consuming |
|
|
|
The fluorescent X-ray analysis, which requires a short time for inspection and allows a non-destructive inspection, although being qualitative analysis, is widely used commonly as a screening with a certain standard value specified. If such a standard is exceeded in a screening analysis, various quantitative analyses shall be conducted.
The fluorescent X-ray analysis has the following restrictions.
(1) |
The amount of total chromium can be detected, but the hexavalent chromium (Cr6+) content can not be detected separately; therefore, it shall be confirmed as a rule that the detected amount of total chromium dose not exceed the standard value. |
(2) |
For substances that contain brominated substances (not limited to PBB or PBDE, the RoHS control subjects), the detection waveform of bromine (Br) may cover over the waveforms of other environmental load substances; therefore, other quantitative analysis methods may be required. |
|
|
|
4. REACH Regulation |
|
REACH stands for Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals. This regulation is new chemical substance control in EU. It was forced from June 1 in 2007.A chemical substance should be registered and the evaluation of its safety is necessary if the chemical substance more than 1 ton is manufactured or imported in EU. A chemical substance name should be disclosed if more than 0.1 weight % of hazardous substance (SVHC: Substance of Very High Concern) that is determined by EU is contained in the products after June 2009. Furthermore a notification should be done if the amount of SVHC is more than 1 ton per year.
The first SVHC candidate list was issued in October 2008 and since January 2010 the list added per approximately every half a year. |
|
5. Chemical Substances on Many Inquiries |
|
(1) |
Phthalates
4 kind of phthalates (DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP) have been restricted as RoHS directive regulated substances since June 2015 (Effective date is 22nd. July 2019). Our wires and cables are complied with 4 phthalate restriction by next RoHS directive from manufacturing on 1st. Jan. 2015 |
(2) |
PFOS(perfluorooctane sulfonate)
It has been banned that the product which contains PFOS(perfluorooctane sulfonate) or relates of PFOS exceeding certain amount is placed on the market by DIRECTIVE 2006/122/EC after June 27,2008. PFOS was used as water proof agent. It is very persistent, accumulative and also suspected of toxic. The PFOS and relates of it are not used in our Electronic Wire products. Therefore you can use our products without care of these chemical substances. |
(3) |
Specific benzotriazole
2-(2H-1,2,3-benzotriazole-il)-4,6-di-tert-butylphenol(specific benzotriazole) has been designated as Class I Specified Chemical Substance of Japanese Law concerning the Evaluation of
Chemical Substances and Regulation of Their Manufacture, etc, which is banned to manufacture and import actually November 10,2007. This substance was added to plastic resin as UV-absorbance. However this substance is not used in our Electronic Wire products. Therefore you can use our products without care of this chemical substance. |
(4) |
Di-methyl fumarate(DMF)
After 1 May 2009, products containing Di-methyl fumarate (DMF) were prohibited from being placed on and sold on the market in EU by DIRECTIVE 2009/251/EC. Di-methyl fumarate is packaged in the small bags in furniture to prevent the products from getting moldy. However, it causes allergic reaction when it touches human skin and it is prohibited. The DMF is not used in our Electronic Wire products and its packing. Therefore you can use our products without care of this chemical substance. |
|
|
|
|
|