Quotes for environmentally weighted recyclability (QWERTY): concept of describing product recyclability in terms of environmental value

The quotes for environmentally weighted recyclability (QWERTY) approach focuses on the determination of environmentally weighted recycling scores rather than weight-based recycling scores. The concept describes the environmental performance of processing discarded products. It is very powerful in assessing the effectiveness of end-of-life processing, the consequences of design of products in relation to recyclability issues and the consequences of proposed legislation on take-back and recycling of consumer electronic products. QWERTY takes into account the 'environmental value' of secondary materials and the environmental burden of end-of-life treatment itself. The basic mathematical procedures for calculating QWERTY scores are presented as well as the application on the actual processing of different categories of consumer electronic products. For these categories, the complex decomposition behaviour into fractions has been modelled and integrated into the QWERTY calculations. Application of the QWERTY concept shows how well the primary environmental goals of take-back and end-of-life treatment, reduction of material depletion, controlling potential toxicity and reducing emissions can be achieved in practice. Applying the QWERTY concept on the end-of-life treatment of cathode ray tube containing appliances and cellular phones shows its value in assessing priorities in the field of policy, technology and design.