2. Outline
• RoHS vs Conflict Minerals
• When and why
• What and where
• Disassembly vs disjointment
• Conclusion
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3. RoHS vs Conflict Minerals
• For RoHS you need to establish that
the banned substances are not present
above allowable limits.
– Can be done by testing
• For Conflict Minerals you need to
establish that the four elements of
interest do not come from banned
locations.
– Can only be done from supply chain audit
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4. When and Why
• Paperwork is inadequate
– Older parts from inventory
– You cannot tell if a substance of interest is
present
• Spot check
– Material
– Supplier
• Due Diligence
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5. What to look for in Conflict Minerals
• Evidence of tin (Sn), tantalum (Ta),
tungsten (W), gold (Au)
• If these elements are detected in a
component, you are at risk
– You need to work with your suppliers to
establish origin.
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6. Where are they likely to hide?
• Sn: solder, plating, bronze parts
• Ta: ICs, capacitors
• W: ICs, discrete components, light
bulbs
• Au: ICs, discrete components, printed
circuit boards
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7. These metals are everywhere in
electronics
• Is there hidden tin plating inside a
cable?
• Can you tell if there are tantalum
capacitors in your product?
Disassembly of a cable.
Yes there was hidden tin
plating.
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8. Ta and W are common in silicon ICs
IC cross section
W here
Ta here
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9. Disassembly vs disjointment
• Disassembly
– Can be put back together, in principle
• Mostly mechanical parts
• Cable
• Disjointment
– Cannot be easily separated
• Like plating from substrate
• ICs, resistors, capacitors…
– Usually needs a cross-section
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10. Conclusion
• It is relatively easy to assess the presence or
absence of an element in a layer.
• EDX and XRF, if used properly, can do a good
job at detection
• Disassembly, disjointment and screening
provide you with data to evaluate your risk,
not to remove it completely
• Rate your risks and decide which suppliers to
pursue.
– Ask only the right questions.
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11. Contact Information
Dr. Martine Simard–Normandin
President & CEO
MuAnalysis
2301 St. Laurent Blvd., Suite 500
Ottawa, ON K1G 4J7 Canada
Telephone: (613) 721-4664
Facsimile: (613) 721-4682
Email: info@muanalysis
Website: www.muanalysis.com
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