EU Updates Certain RoHS 2 Exemptions
April 24, 2019
On February 5, 2019, the European Commission published Directives (EU) 2019/169 ~ (EU) 2019/178 renewing nine exemptions and adding one exemption to Annex III of RoHS 2.
SAFEGUARDS | Electrical & Electronics NO. 054/19
On February 5, 2019, the Official Journal (OJ) of the European Union published amending Directives ((EU) 2019/169 ~ (EU) 2019/178), which update Annex III exemptions of the RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU.
These amendments cover varied applications of materials and components containing lead and cadmium, including:
- Lead in applications in certain dielectric ceramic, solders, fluorescent powder and printing inks
- Cadmium in certain electrical contacts and printing inks
Directives EU 2019/169 through EU2019/177 provide a more refined definition of the scope of the exemption and update the expiration dates, while Directive EU 2019/178 adds a new exemption (entry 42) for lead in specific applications.
These amendments came into effect on the 20th day after publication in the OJ, and Member States will need to adopt these updates by March 1, 2020, except for the newly-added ‘entry 42’ which will be applied on July 22, 2019. The updated RoHS exemptions are summarized in Table 1.
| Table 1. Updated expiration dates and exemptions in Annex III of RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU | ||
|---|---|---|
| Entry No. | Exemption | Expiration date / Category |
| 7(c)-II | Lead in dielectric ceramic in capacitors for a rated voltage of 125 V AC or 250 V DC or higher. Does not apply to applications covered by point 7(c)-I and 7(c)-IV of this Annex. |
|
| 7(c)-IV | Lead in PZT based dielectric ceramic materials for capacitors which are part of integrated circuits or discrete semiconductors. |
|
| 8(b) | Cadmium and its compounds in electrical contacts. |
|
| 8(b)-I | Cadmium and its compounds in electrical contacts used in:
|
Applies to categories 1 to 7 and 10, and expires on July 21, 2021 |
| 15 | Lead in solders to complete a viable electrical connection between semiconductor die and carrier within integrated circuit flip chip packages. | Applies to categories 8, 9 and 11:
|
| 15(a) | Lead in solders to complete a viable electrical connection between the semiconductor die and carrier within integrated circuit flip chip packages where at least one of the following criteria applies:
|
Applies to categories 1 to 7 and 10, and expires on July 21, 2021. |
| 18(b) | Lead as activator in fluorescent powder (1 % lead by weight or less) of discharge lamps when used as sun tanning lamps containing phosphors such as BSP (BaSi2O5:Pb) |
|
| 18(b)-I | Lead as activator in fluorescent powder (1 % lead by weight or less) of discharge lamps containing phosphors such as BSP (BaSi2O5:Pb) when used in medical phototherapy equipment. | Applies to 5 and 8, excluding applications covered by entry 34 of Annex IV and expires on July 21, 2021 |
| 21 | Lead and cadmium in printing inks for the application of enamels on glasses, such as borosilicate and soda lime glasses. | Applies to categories 8, 9 and 11:
|
| 21(a) | Cadmium when used in color printed glass to provide filtering functions, used as a component in lighting applications installed in displays and control panels of EEE. | Applies to 1 to 7 and 10 except applications covered by entry 21(b) or entry 39 and expires on July 21, 2021. |
| 21(b) | Cadmium in printing inks for the application of enamels on glasses, such as borosilicate and soda lime glasses. | Applies to 1 to 7 and 10 except applications covered by entry 21(a) or 39 and expires on July 21, 2021 |
| 21(c) | Lead in printing inks for the application of enamels on other than borosilicate glasses. | Applies to 1 to 7 and 10 and expires on July 21, 2021 |
| 29 | Lead bound in crystal glass as defined in Annex I (Categories 1, 2, 3 and 4) of Council Directive 69/493/EEC. |
|
| 32 | Lead oxide in seal frit used for making window assemblies for Argon and Krypton laser tubes. |
|
| 37 | Lead in the plating layer of high voltage diodes on the basis of a zinc borate glass body. |
|
| 42 | Lead in bearings and bushes of diesel or gaseous fuel powered internal combustion engines applied in non-road professional use equipment:
|
Applies to category 11, excluding applications covered by entry 6(c) of this Annex. Expires on July 21, 2024 |
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