RoHS stands for Restriction of Hazardous Substances and was originally named Directive 2002/95/EC. It is a compliance framework that restricts the usage of environmentally hazardous substances in electronic products.
The framework was first designed and started in 2006 and is applicable in various nations of the European Union. Originally, it targeted six specific chemicals or elements that could damage the environment and human health.
Except for use in batteries, the following six elements were banned from usage in electrical and electronic products:
- Lead (Pb)
- Cadmium (Cd)
- Mercury (Hg)
- Hexavalent chromium (crvi)
- Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)
- Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE)
How RoHS framework works?
RoHS is mainly a self-regulatory framework, whereby the concerned company needs to abide by the compliance law. They need to test their products and submit necessary documents, stating the safety of the product.
If the directive finds safety breaches, it can restrict the complete product after a set of processes. Moreover, penalties would also be charged in case of illegal products.
Types of RoHS
The original RoHS directive has undergone multiple changes since its inception in 2006. The list of which is mentioned below:
RoHS 1 and 2
RoHS 1 was the original directive. However, RoHS 2 was the evolved version of the original one that followed the exact guidelines but extended its reach to some other products like cover cables, inner components, spare parts, and much more. Even medical devices were included under this framework and was made mandatory to follow.
RoHS 3
Directive 2015/863 was the evolved version of RoHS 2 and was essentially known as RoHS 3. Apart from the six original substances, phthalates were also added to the list of harmful chemicals, which were used in PVC.
The list of substances under RoHS 3 include:
- Lead (Pb)
- Cadmium (Cd)
- Mercury (Hg)
- Hexavalent chromium (crvi)
- Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)
- Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE)
- Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP)
- Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP)
- Dibutyl phthalate (DBP)
- Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP)
The newest restriction was added on phthalates and the regulation was started in 2019. Under EU regulations, less than 0.1% of phthalates could be used depending on the total weight of the product.
RoHS 5 and 6
Certain products like medical instruments and monitoring devices required special permissions for their category of usage. They were categorized under RoHS 5 and 6 where they could use regulated amounts of lead.
For more information on this, you can check with Enviropass RoHS compliance guidelines that cover it all.
