The hibernating mobile phone: Dead storage as a barrier to efficient electronic waste recovery

Garrath T Wilson,Grace Smalley,James R Suckling,Debra Lilley,Jacquetta Lee,Richard Mawle

doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2016.12.023

Abstract

Hibernation, the dead storage period when a mobile phone is still retained by the user at its end-of-life, is both a common and a significant barrier to the effective flow of time-sensitive stock value within a circular economic model. In this paper we present the findings of a survey of 181 mobile phone owners, aged between 18–25years old, living and studying in the UK, which explored mobile phone ownership, reasons for hibernation, and replacement motives. This paper also outlines and implements a novel mechanism for quantifying the mean hibernation period based on the survey findings. The results show that only 33.70% of previously owned mobile phones were returned back into the system. The average duration of ownership of mobile phones kept and still in hibernation was 4years 11months, with average use and hibernation durations of 1year 11months, and 3years respectively; on average, mobile phones that are kept by the user are hibernated for longer than they are ever actually used as primary devices. The results also indicate that mobile phone replacement is driven primarily by physical (technological, functional and absolute) obsolescence, with economic obsolescence, partly in response to the notion of being ‘due an upgrade’, also featuring significantly. We also identify in this paper the concept of a secondary phone, a recently replaced phone that holds a different function for the user than their primary phone but is still valued and intentionally retained by the user, and which, we conclude, should be accounted for in any reverse logistics strategy.

Highlights

IntroductionGiven the global prevalence of supply and demand, and linear economic models (built upon the ideas of neoclassical economics and its theories of consumption), the goal of continuous growth is predicated upon intensive energy and material use in both the production and consumption phase (Mont and Bleischwitz, 2007)
Given the global prevalence of supply and demand, and linear economic models, the goal of continuous growth is predicated upon intensive energy and material use in both the production and consumption phase (Mont and Bleischwitz, 2007)
15 If you have kept any old mobile phones, for what reasons did you keep them? Please select all that apply I plan to sell at a later date I do not know why I think it’s not worth anything I keep to use the spare parts Old technology is collectable I plan to trade against another Valuable information is stored on handset I plan to send away for safe disposal I do not know what to do with it I plan to give away later as a gift I keep it as a spare Other

Summary

Introduction

Given the global prevalence of supply and demand, and linear economic models (built upon the ideas of neoclassical economics and its theories of consumption), the goal of continuous growth is predicated upon intensive energy and material use in both the production and consumption phase (Mont and Bleischwitz, 2007). The European Union consumes approximately 25–30% of all metals globally produced, but is only responsible itself for 3% of production (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, 2012), resulting in an increasing dependency on the import of raw materials. It has been apparent for some time that such a linear economy is unsustainable, both in terms of long-term maintainability and sustainable development, it has become problematic to decouple resource throughput and move to more circular economic models, as it would slow down economic growth, and this would undermine ‘growth is good’ policies (Stahel, 2010). The circular economy provides an opportunity to mitigate (but not eliminate) the negative ecological, social, and economic consequences generated by the increased turnover of consumer electronics (Zhang et al, 2012) by ensuring that the lifetime of products is increased (where appropriate) (Cooper, 2010; Stahel, 2010), and by ensuring that end-of-life products (and the precious materials that they contain) are returned back into the loop and are not land filled, incinerated or lost (Darby and Obara, 2005)

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Conclusion