RoHS/WEEE (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive) are European Union regulations that seek to control the level of several toxic substances found in electronics.
RoHS limits the amount of several substances allowed in homogeneous components of electronic materials to the levels shown in the table below. “Homogeneous” is defined as a material of uniform composition that in principle cannot be mechanically disjointed into different materials.
XRF screening may be used for due diligence as part of a testing program to achieve compliance, as it offers significant cost savings by limiting the number of wet chemical analysis required. In the case of hexavalent chromium and polybrominated biphenyls/diphenyl ethers, values in a non-metal for chromium or bromine, respectively, would require follow up to determine the specific state of the elements.