Preliminary Conference Agenda

The presentation will introduce the STEP Initiative and its new African focus group, a multi-stakeholder platform designed to support the advancement of circular electronics management across the African continent. The presentation will cover the motivation for the group, its governance structure, scope of activities, and its approach to aligning with regional and international initiatives. Highlighting key challenges and opportunities in the African e-waste landscape, the presentation will also explain how the focus group intends to bring together those who work for change. 

This panel discussion explores the evolving landscape of electronics management across Africa, focusing on the shift towards higher levels of the waste hierarchy, such as reuse, repair, and refurbishment. The session will highlight the innovative business models emerging from the continent and the potential for Africa to lead in resource efficiency through local expertise and manual disassembly.

The discussion will address the practicalities of moving materials across borders and explore how hub-and-spoke models might improve regional trade and material recovery. Panellists will also consider the balance between managing domestic waste and the refurbishment of imported equipment, a topic of significant debate within the industry that requires careful standards and quality control.

Finally, the session will identify specific opportunities for international companies to collaborate with African partners. The goal is to outline how global expertise can support local capacity in a mutually beneficial, sustainable way, providing a clear roadmap for the sector's future.

The goal of the study realized for the Environment Administration of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg by RDC Environment is to better understand why Luxembourg’s separate collection rate for WEEE performs the way it does, and what can be done to improve it.

The study first sets the scene by explaining the two official calculation approaches for WEEE collection rates under Directive 2012/19/EU, highlighting how the choice of method can shape both reported results.

Then it presents the key factors identified as driving or limiting collection performance in Luxembourg and show how each factor influences the rate in measurable terms.

Finally, practical recommendations are presented that stakeholders can implement to strengthen separate WEEE collection and move Luxembourg closer to its regulatory and circular ambitions.

Flat Panel Displays (FPDs) are among the fastest growing and most complex e-waste streams, containing valuable materials but also hazardous substances. My presentation compares three practical recycling approaches: (1) manual dismantling, (2) automated systems, and (3) mechanical shredding. From hands-on experience at UAB Elektronikos Perdirbimas, I will show why manual dismantling remains the most adaptable and environmentally sound method for FPD processing. The session will also address BFR management, worker safety, and the quality of recovered materials.
 

The growing need for sustainable silicon sourcing, driven by environmental, economic, and geopolitical concerns, has accelerated the development of novel SMXycling routes for kerf waste – the silicon-rich slurry generated during wafer slicing in photovoltaic manufacturing as well as the Fluidized Bed Reactor fines generated during the Trichlorosilane purification on Polysilicon Plants. This paper presents a technically advanced and environmentally favorable process for converting kerf waste into high-purity metallurgical-grade silicon (MG-Si), with a particular focus on the role of furnace technologies employed at different stages. The process, known as Silicon 5.0®, integrates multiple thermal treatment stages designed to handle the complexity and impurity profile of industrial kerf. Due to the variable composition of kerf – which includes high moisture content, thixotropic behavior, and contaminations such as boron, carbon, aluminium, and metals – tailored furnace solutions are required to ensure energy efficiency and product quality. The first stage involves pyrolysis and calcination of agglomerated kerf in rotary kilns, targeting the removal of volatile organic compounds, moisture, and loosely bound contaminants. Rotary kilns have been optimized to operate under controlled inert atmospheres to minimize oxidation and unwanted reactions. The system's continuous feed design allows pSMXise residence time and temperature profiles to ensure complete transformation of the kerf into a dry, granular intermediate suitable for further processing. The second thermal treatment focuses on smelting in induction furnaces, where pre-calcined kerf is melted together with dopant-free silicon fines and selected flux materials. Induction furnaces offer critical advantages: rapid and uniform heating, minimal contamination risk due to crucible-less operation, and flexible control of the thermal environment. This stage enables selective alloying and removal of elements such as Fe, P, and Al through controlled slag formation. Process parameters have been fine-tuned to limit the formation of silicon carbide (SiC) and ensure optimal melt homogeneity. Following melting, holding furnaces are employed for the temperature stabilization and refining of silicon melting. These furnaces support additional purification strategies such as diSMXtional solidification or gas injection to further control impurity levels, particularly boron and carbon, which are critical for downstream applications. The refined melt is then cast into ingots or other semi-finished products, ready for reintegration into the photovoltaic or metallurgical value chains. Preliminary industrial trials indicate that silicon SMXovered via this integrated furnace-based SMXycling route exhibits impurity levels that are significantly lower than conventional MG-Si, with Fe < 300 ppm, Al < 100 ppm, and a boron content often below 0.1 ppmw. Most notably, the carbon footprint of the entire process was reduced to 1.49 kg CO₂e/kg Si, compared to industry averages of 6.5–12.5 kg CO₂e/kg Si, highlighting the environmental advantages of furnace-optimized kerf SMXycling. This work demonstrates that, through the strategic application of advanced furnace technologies—including rotary kilns, induction furnaces, and holding furnaces—it is possible to transform industrial kerf from a problematic waste into a viable and sustainable raw material for high-purity silicon production.