EU RoHS refers to the EU-Directive 2002/95/EC on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in electrical and electronic equipment which was adopted on 27 January 2003. EU RoHS also applies to solar panels. It restricts the use of a total of six hazardous materials in the manufacturing process of all kinds of electronics and electronic products. The substances and their maximum limits are:
| Substance | Maximum limit (ppm) |
| 1. Cadmium (Cd) | 100 |
| 2. Hexavalent chromium (Cr6+) | 1000 |
| 3. Lead (Pb) | 1000 |
| 4. Mercury (Hg) | 1000 |
| 5. Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) | 1000 |
| 6. Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) | 1000 |
Having taken effect on 1 July 2006, the RoHS-Directive was to and has become law in the national legislations of each EU-member states. In order to ensure the legal distribution of their products within the EU, manufacturers, importers and retailers need to ensure the compliance of their products with the RoHS-requirements. With regards to raw homogeneous materials level, the share of Cadmium must be below 0.01% while that of the substances Hexavalent chromium, Lead, Mecury, Polybrominated biphenyls and Polybrominated diphenyl ether may not exceed 0.1%. The Directive can be found here.
The Directive exempts thin-film PV modules from the restriction on using Cadmium telluride (CdTe) in thin-film PV modules. This exemption has been further extended as by May 2011.
James Forsythe
on 03 Oct 2021