Emission inventory of deca-brominated diphenyl ether (DBDE) in Japan

Atmospheric emissions of deca-brominated diphenyl ether (DBDE) in Japan were estimated based on the material flow of DBDE products and their emission factors. In 2002, the demand for DBDE in Japan was 2,200 ton/year and their stock was about 60,000 ton. The DBDE flow into the waste stream was estimated to be about 6,000 ton/year. Flow out through the second-hand product exports were greater than 700 ton/year. Home-appliance recycling facilities dismantle and crush domestic wastes containing about 600 ton of DBDE annually. Material recycling of crushed plastics is not commonly practiced as yet. Emission factors from plastics processing (2 × 10-9 - 1 × 10-7), textile processing (9 × 10-7), home-appliance recycling (8 × 10-9 - 5 × 10-6), and waste incineration (1 × 10-7 - 2 × 10-6) were estimated using field measurement data. The DBDE emission rate through house dust during the service life of final products (2 × 10-7 - 9 × 10-7 per year) was estimated using the DBDE concentration in dust and the amount of dust in used televisions. Emission factors from previous studies were also used. The estimated total DBDE emission was 170-1,800 kg/year. These results suggest the necessity to characterize emissions during the service life of products, an essential information for formulating an appropriate e-waste recycling strategy.