The sustainability potential of (W)EEE re-use in Ireland; evaluation, implementation, auto-identification and the internet of things

In this thesis, re-use is considered as a potential building block towards achieving more sustainable consumption of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). A sustainability analysis demonstrates that EEE re-use, when adapted as part of national policy, can potentially benefit all sectors of society. For white goods re-use, a quantitative model permitted a comparative analysis of re-use and non-re-use scenarios to determine the environmental impacts. The model demonstrates the importance of considering user consumption profiles and the changing national electricity generation portfolio in determining the best end of life strategy; whether it should be re-use or recycling. The outcome of the model suggests that re-use of white goods whose energy rating is one below the cheapest available new product is environmentally preferable. Using domestic and international data, the thesis also argues that the development of a re-use sector provides an opportunity to make a significant contribution to social and economic growth by creating employment and enabling sustainable economic growth. The thesis concludes that re-use of electrical and electronic equipment is as an activity that must be regulated in order to develop in a sustainable fashion, avoiding sham re-use and promoting consumer confidence. A dedicated re-use body/organisation is proposed to ensure that only refurbishers who are recognised to be operating to the designated standards will be in a position to access supply and to have their activities reported as official re-use. The thesis also discusses how technological developments within the EEE industry, specifically RFID and the Internet of Things can potentially pave a new future for WEEE management. Results are presented for RFID trials on white goods and mixed WEEE at a civic amenity and identification rates of between 94% and 50% were achieved. An information technology infrastructure for EOL WEEE management is proposed incorporating identification and separation of WEEE suitable for different recovery avenues whether re-use, targeted spare parts recovery, recycling or possibly isolated decontamination.