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WASTE MINIMIZATION ASSESSMENT FOR A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD MANUFACTURER
Citation:
Looby, G. AND F. Kirsch. WASTE MINIMIZATION ASSESSMENT FOR A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD MANUFACTURER. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/S-92/008 (NTIS PB92196344), 1992.
Description:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has funded a pilot project to assist small- and medium-size manufacturers who want to minimize their generation of waste but who lack the expertise to do so. Waste Minimization Assessment Centers (WMACs) were established at selected universities and procedures were adapted from the EPA Waste Minimization Opportunity Assessment Manual (EPA/625/7-88/003, July 1988). he WMAC team at the University of Tennessee performed an assessment at a plant manufacturing printed circuit boards for television sets - approximately 4.3 million square feet of finished boards per year. o make printed circuit boards the plant begins with making screens as all printing is accomplished using silk-screening techniques. he circuit boards undergo several operations including punching, scrubbing, printing, etching, and soldering. Finished boards are inspected, deslugged, electrically tested, packed and shipped. he team's report, detailing findings and recommendations, indicated that the majority of waste was generated in the circuit board production lines but that the greatest savings could be obtained by installing a closed-loop cooling water system to reduce (60%) excess water usage in the UV-light curing ovens after screen printing and the cooling of the cupric chloride etch tanks. his Research Brief was developed by the principal investigators and EPA's Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory, Cincinnati, OH, to announce key findings of an ongoing research project that Is fully documented in a separate report of the same title available from the authors.
