Depollution benchmarks for capacitors, batteries and printed wiring boards from waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE)

•We've analysed data on the dismantling of electronic and electrical appliances.•Ten years of mass balance data of more than recycling companies have been considered.•Percentages of dismantled batteries, capacitors and PWB have been studied.•Threshold values and benchmarks for batteries and capacitors have been identified.•No benchmark for the dismantling of printed wiring boards should be set.

The article compiles and analyses sample data for toxic components removed from waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE) from more than 30 recycling companies in Switzerland over the past ten years. According to European and Swiss legislation, toxic components like batteries, capacitors and printed wiring boards have to be removed from WEEE. The control bodies of the Swiss take back schemes have been monitoring the activities of WEEE recyclers in Switzerland for about 15 years. All recyclers have to provide annual mass balance data for every year of operation. From this data, percentage shares of removed batteries and capacitors are calculated in relation to the amount of each respective WEEE category treated. A rationale is developed, why such an indicator should not be calculated for printed wiring boards. The distributions of these de-pollution indicators are analysed and their suitability for defining lower threshold values and benchmarks for the depollution of WEEE is discussed. Recommendations for benchmarks and threshold values for the removal of capacitors and batteries are given.